Sign language of the Netherlands (SLN) and deaf culture

Abstract In this article, we give an impression of the development of Deaf culture as a subject taught to student-teachers and student-interpreters of Sign Language of the Netherlands (SLN). One specific problem for students of any sign language is that there is no where they can encounter the language in a natural way and come into contact with the culture in which that language is embedded. By force of this fact, we developed various courses in Deaf culture linked to practical assignments that encourage students to go forth into the Deaf community and link the theoretical knowledge taught in our classes with their own experiences among the Deaf. Introduction A new professional training program was created in the Netherlands with the aim of training teachers and interpreters in Sign Language of the Netherlands (SLN). This is a four-year program in which the students, who usually have zero knowledge of SLN when they begin their training, are taught the language as well as the tools of their future trade. This means that the student-teachers are taught the structural didactics of SLN and the professional knowledge they need to become language teachers. The student-interpreters are taught SLN, Dutch, and interpreting skills and the professional knowledge they need to become interpreters. These three major aspects of the program (language, didactics/interpreting and professional skills) are supported by knowledge of Deaf culture (1). Contrary to learners of any given spoken language, sign language students cannot benefit from visits to even one country where this language is used, since there is no such thing as a country. They cannot meet native signers or encounter the culture in which the language is used in a natural way. This unique situation distinguishes the teaching and learning of Sign language from that of other languages. Since learning a language implies also learning the pragmatic rules and the cultural contexts belonging to that language, this obviously poses a major difficulty for sign language students all over the world, whatever sign language they are studying. A second 'problem' is that in the hearing world there is little knowledge on the specific communication problems that the deaf encounter from birth on (e.g., Van den Bogaerde 2000). Deafness is sometimes called 'the invisible handicap' because you cannot see it in a person. Since most deaf people have incomplete knowledge of the spoken language of the hearing majority, their speech is often incomprehensible to hearing people. This fact, amongst others, has contributed to the view that deaf people are backward, ignorant or socially not adapted. Many hearing students just starting their studies share these biases and they need to be re-educated on these issues. Not only for their own professional performance, but also because as professionals they will encounter many hearing people who share these views and they have to learn how to deal with these attitudes. During this four-year program, the students are encouraged to enter the deaf community and become an accepted guest or member who is a future professional. In addition, our deaf teachers also teach students explicitly about Deaf culture in the curriculum. The Deaf culture courses had to be newly developed by us, since hardly any literature exists on the Deaf community in the Netherlands, and no material was available (2). Our Deaf culture courses have been taught now for five years and are constantly revised. In this article, we will briefly describe the four-year program for Deaf culture. Deaf Culture Deaf culture is taught every year in the four-year program. In the first year, students become acquainted with the definitions and concepts of culture, community and group within the Deaf community. In the second, third and fourth years of the program, the focus shifts to professional training (e.g. SLN grammar, didactics, interpreting skills and so forth). …