this post was submitted on 18 Jan 2024
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If sign language is your first language, any written language is like a foreign language that you might've learned but aren't a native speaker in.
ASL (or whichever sign language) is NOT a direct visual translation of English or French or Mandarin or whatever. It's a totally different language and the written language is a second language. People might be highly proficient at reading and writing English in an English speaking country but it's a different language.
And incredibly regional as well.
Any isolated language with a small local population is going to differentiate quickly, and while the Internet is bringing everyone together and making written language more consistent, it's not like deaf people send each other videos online, they just use written English because it's insanely easier and faster for everyone.
I knew a 3/4 deaf girl who had learned ASL, who had a bf who was fully deaf from birth… he did send her videos of himself signing.
Sure, lots of couples send videos to each other.
But I doubt that was their sole method of conversation
I meant more of general conversation, like instead of scrolling comments on here, we had to watch a video of what everyone say without knowing where it was going.
Completely impractical
Well, it's not like being handicaped is practical.
People with disability have to deal with impractical situation all the time bc what is practical for able people is just not faisable or extremely unpractical for them, and society is far from being inclusive.
A decent amount of deaf people don’t speak English so wouldn’t be using written English. Schools that teach both are actually called dual language schools
Deaf people that can’t hear at all, still read and write, please stop speaking for a lifestyle you don’t know anything about.
😂 I’m deaf you numpty. There’s entire deaf communities that don’t read or write english. It’s actually a hotly debated topic as some think kids shouldn’t be forced to learn both.
Only in 'murica (and the anglosphere) could people think that learning more languages could possibly be a bad thing...
I’m not American but it’s suggested that learning a sign language and a ‘spoken’ language at the same time can slow the acquisition of both.
We see it in kids with two ‘spoken’ languages too but I believe to a lesser extent.
If I had a deaf kid I would teach them both but I understand the choices of parents that don’t do that.
What in the world? It’s commonly understood that children learn the fastest and if you want to learn multiple languages, it’s best learned early..
You've got mixed up there. If you plan to learn multiple languages then it is beneficial to learn as a child but even similar languages, like English and French, can cause issues communicating when young. When learning vastly different languages especially when one is written and one signed it causes a lot of issues. This can leave a deaf child struggling to communicate for a time.
Often deaf parents will choose to stick to sign first.
And they'd have no idea what ASL was....
So what's your point?
Not even every English speaking country uses ASL, and it's different in different regions even in America.
You’ve got confused. A lot of deaf people speak ASL, BSL, AUSLAN etc exclusively. They don’t speak English. Speaking both is bilingual.
Who's talking about speaking?
We're talking about reading/writing/typing...
I would be insanely surprised if someone used American/British/Australian sign language yet didn't know a single written language. Especially not the one used in their geographical location
https://www.helloglobo.com/blog/illiteracy-in-the-deaf-community-how-language-services-can-help#:~:text=Low%20literacy%20among%20Deaf%20and,do%20not%20speak%20their%20language.
This explains why a fair amount of deaf people don’t use written language.
That blog is an argument for helping them with literacy when in school...
Not giving up on literacy as an adult.
If a deadlf adult has difficulty reading, it's not because they're deaf or it's "not their first language" it's probably because they were left behind in school because really old stereotypes were still around when they were in school
You seem to be arguing that those harmful stereotypes are true, and deaf people are innately bad at written language. Which frankly is offensive enough I'm done here.
Lots of different groups get left behind in schools, it doesn't mean they're stupid, it means they didn't get the education they need.
Absolute bollocks. How many languages do you speak? It is difficult to learn a second language, some don’t and there’s an argument that kids shouldn’t be forced to as learning two languages at once can delay their primary language.
Nobody is saying that people who can’t speak two languages are ‘stupid’ except you.
Maybe read a little and you might learn something?
I speak 3 confidently, on the path to 5. If the intent is to simply glean information from a native speaker, I'm currently at 7.
It isn't. Americans and some anglophones think that's the case because they're lazy and look for excuses.
That's complete bullshit. You do know that kids in most of the world grow up learning between 2 and 3 languages in school and that doesn't impair their native language at all, right?
I’ve replied to your other message with the info that you’re looking for.
Many people speak multiple languages but it’s a choice that parents make for their offspring and some make a different choice.
Some also see other languages as more important and I know in America it’s not uncommon for deaf people to speak ASL and LSM if they come from a Hispanic community.
Who's talking about speaking?
We're talking about reading/writing/typing...
I would be insanely surprised if someone used American/British/Australian sign language yet didn't know a single written language
I didn't know about this before but I does make a lot of sense :)