The Interdisciplinary Minor in American Sign Language will increase students' proficiency in sign language and provide them with key tools for the workforce of the 21st century. Students are provided a solid foundation in the way Deaf culture, Deaf history and language accessibility intersect with power, equality and human connection. A minimum of 21 credits is required for the program.
Learning Objectives
A. Critical Analysis:
- Articulate a critical understanding of the way that language, culture, privileged and marginalized societies have shaped the Deaf and ASL community and the relationship with the majority “hearing” society.
- Identify linguistic patterns, analyze sentence structure, and apply essential components of sign language grammar in professional and conversational settings.
- Analyze and interpret the use of literary and storytelling techniques in American Sign Language, including rhymes, rhythm, and movement. Examine literature and film in its cultural and historical context.
- Construct grammatically correct and well-articulated expressive videos in the target language, on literary, linguistic, and cultural topics.
B. Global and Cultural Awareness:
- Conduct dynamic conversations in a culturally and socially appropriate manner with speakers of the target language in person and with the use of technology.
- Reflect critically on their own socially and culturally constructed values and behavior patterns, through recognizing and appreciating cultural difference.
- Explain the conceptual shifts between Deaf history and current Deaf movements and how these are relevant to Deaf rights in America and around the world.
- Analyze historical and cultural Deaf perspectives from a variety of countries, including the topics of Deaf empowerment, Deaf identity, and the documentation and preservation of language and culture.
C. Written and Oral Communication in a Second Language:
- Practice signed expressive communication to present information, describe and narrate personal experiences and events in a coherent, well-developed manner. Demonstrate contextual flexibility and appropriate register, applying proper advanced language techniques in a variety of professional and social interactions.
- Exchange information and discuss opinions and individual perspectives on familiar topics of personal and public interest, both prepared and impromptu.
- Present a coherent and persuasive argument, which demonstrates competent use of a variety of sentence structures, cohesive devices, and pertinent vocabulary.
- Make effective use of written critical analysis on a variety of relevant topics, and articulate knowledge of the Deaf literary traditions-crafting works in poetry and creative formats (songs, handshape, letter & number stories etc.)
Effective Fall 2023
Students must satisfactorily complete the total credits required for the minor. Minors and interdisciplinary minors require 12 or more upper-division (300- to 400-level) credits.
Additional coursework may be required due to prerequisites.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Select a minimum of 12 credits from the following: | 12 | |
| Second-Year American Sign Language I | ||
| Second-Year American Sign Language II | ||
| Group Study-American Sign Language | ||
| Deafness and American Sign Language | ||
| American Sign Language for Professionals | ||
| Select a minimum of 9 credits from the following upper-division courses: 1 | 9 | |
| Language and Culture | ||
| Principles of Human Physiology | ||
| Functional Neuroanatomy | ||
| Fundamentals of Physiology | ||
| Human Heredity and Birth Defects | ||
| Literacy and the Learner | ||
| Infant and Child Development in Context | ||
| Disability across the Lifespan and Culture | ||
| Disabilities in Early Childhood Education | ||
| The Disability Experience in Society | ||
| Sensation and Perception | ||
| Cognitive Neuroscience | ||
| Social Inequality | ||
| Dismantling Privilege and Oppression | ||
| Fields of Practice: Child Protection | ||
| Fields of Practice: Social Gerontology | ||
| Social Welfare - Policy, Issues, and Advocacy | ||
| Nonverbal Communication | ||
| Co-Cultural Communication | ||
| Program Total Credits: | 21 | |
- 1
Courses with prerequisites are intended for majors in those departments who wish to add the ASL minor.