Discussed are the acquisition of native sign language by deaf children and the factors which must be considered by teachers in providing a transition from sign language to the oral method. (KW)

The article considers whether young deaf children of hearing parents should learn American Sign Language (ASL) as their first language and whether teachers in day high school programs should use manual communication. It concludes that, because ASL is the key to deaf culture, it should be used by parents and teachers. (DB)

Evaluation of effects of manual signing on toddlers' verbal and nonverbal communicative behaviors in an inclusive preschool found that teacher signing was accompanied by increases in communicative interactions by toddlers with and without disabilities. No reductive effects on communicative verbalizations were observed for either group. (Contains…

Described is the alinguistic (without language) child, and proposed is a remedial program stressing manual communication methods. (Author/DB)

This 24-item annotated bibliography is intended to facilitate introduction to the field of sign language studies. It lists selected published works in English in which sign language is viewed from several different aspects, including: theoretical studies (nos. 1, 5, 6, 19, 20 and 21); works relating Sign to other visual communication systems (nos.…

Studied across a 16-month period, young children of deaf parents showed accelerated early language development, on the average producing their first recognizable sign at 8.5 months, their tenth sign at 13.2 months, and their first sign combination at 17.0 months. Findings are inconsistent with previously reported patterns of synchrony between…

Systematic sampling was done of signing between five home-reared chimpanzees who had had 4-7 years of complete immersion in integrating their signing interaction into their nonverbal communication. Eight-eight percent of all signs reported fell into the social categories of reassurance, social interaction, and play. (SL)

Described is the cognitive-developmental training of 19 mute autistic children, mean age 11 years, with special language signs and connected boards elevated 3 to 6 feet above the ground to promote awareness of body in relation to surrounding objects. (MC)

Acquisition of passive and active vocabulary in sign and oral language was analyzed in 2 children congenitally deaf, through age 54 months. Acquisition of sign occurred more quickly than oral language. Production of active nouns, function words, and "wh" question words in sign was equivalent to that of hearing peers, and was later transferred to…

The author critically examines a number of assumptions concerning the nature of language and the process of language acquisition on which methods of deaf education in Britain are based. (LS)

This is a selection of papers that have appeared in the journal "Sign Language Studies" between 1972 and 1979. The aim is to provide the reader with some knowledge of the world as signers see it. The book is for academic decision-makers, teachers and parents of deaf students, as well as the intellectually curious. Following an introductory essay,…

Presented are issues, background information, and a definition pertaining to manual communication, and explored are aspects of language development in aurally handicapped children. Proposed is a functional definition of American Sign Language, with High(H) (a system that accommodates itself to English, such as manual English) and Low (L) (a system…

Investigated were aspects of language development (association, memory, comprehension, and production) in three groups (50 individuals per group) of deaf adolescents who were variously trained by the pure oral method, the combined oral-manual method, and the Rochester fingerspelling method. One hearing group was matched with the deaf in age, and…

Discusses background information about the deaf that may be useful to reading teachers working with older deaf students; suggests additional sources of information on sign language and reading instruction for the deaf. (MKM)