Language planning: British Sign Language Science Signs

1. Language planning: British Sign LanguageScience Signs Edinburgh University Tuesday 4th March 2008

2. Introduction • Rachel O’Neill • Lecturer in Deaf Education at Edinburgh University • BSL Science Signs Project Manager • Gary Quinn • Project Officer at Heriot-Watt University • Linguistic adviser for the BSL Science Signs Project

3. Background • Some facts about British Sign Language (BSL) • BSL is not a new language • It was first described and named around 1980 • Not the same as English • Mainstreaming • More deaf children are now in mainstream schools • Residential and mainstreamed schools • 95% deaf children have hearing parents • Post-mainstreamed deaf children • ‘German’ teaching method • Pre-1880 – sign language used • Post-1880 – oral methods took over • Braidwood set up the UK’s first deaf school: Edinburgh 1760

4. Background • Regional Variation • Regional variation developed • BSL transmitted horizontally from Deaf children of Deaf families to deaf children from hearing families • Will this increase in variation continue now? • Cochlear Implants • Advanced hearing aids • Is it the answer to communications problems? • Teacher of Deaf • Language levels in BSL • Communication Support Workers (CSWs) • Specific subject signs • Level of communication skill

5. BSL vocabulary in technical fields • BSL hasn’t developed many scientific technical terms • Disabled Students Allowance became available - university access • Deaf printers / Deaf dental technicians • College project to collect technical signs • Resources for CSW training

6. BSL’s productive lexicon • Visual features of the situation • Visual metaphors • Collection of signs in a sequence • May be adopted more widely • Gradually become simplified • Parts of it reduced • Moved to more neutral space • E.g. Rome, Satellite, Space-shuttle, fax • E.g. a non-terminating decimal

7. Aims of glossary project • Create 250 science signs • Split into three difference areas– • Chemistry • Physics • Biology • Includes: • New signs • Definitions in full BSL • Fingerspelling patterns

8. Glossary project support • Funded by the Scottish Government • £25,000 for one year • Two members from Scottish Sensory Centre (SSC) • SSC funded by the Scottish Government • SSC – CPD for teachers of deaf children and teachers of visually impaired children

9. First on the web? • The project was not the first of its kind to be online • Dundee and Wolverhampton • Not exactly aimed at intermediate level • Dundee aimed at school students • Wolverhampton aimed to support deaf students at university level

10. Dundee’s website • A number of initialised signs based on fingerspelling • The deaf learner has to lipread to distinguish these initialised signs • E.g. Exothermic and Endothermic (Dundee) • Difficult for deaf children • Given English words pretending to be BSL • Don’t show the productive features of the BSL lexicon • Subject to subject = more and more initialised • English influenced vocabulary

11. Wolverhampton’s website • Quite good and useful for us • No definitions in BSL • Native BSL users were involved • Didn’t have improved signs to highlight the difference between them • English influences the BSL lexicon, e.g. DESIGN-PERSON parallels -er designer, driver, learner • Method is not discussed in detail on their site:www.sciencesigns.ac.uk/home_glossary.as

12. Who was involved and why? • Gerry Hughes: (BA in Maths): involved in the mathematics project and a school teacher of deaf children; • Dr Audrey Cameron (PhD in Chemistry): a school teacher of deaf children; • John Denerley: (BSc Social work) Owner of a wildlife park; • Mary Frances Dolan (BA in Biology): BSL & a school teacher of deaf children; • Dr Mike Fox (PhD in Chemistry): a chemistry researcher;

13. Who was involved and why? • Derek Roger (BA in Biology): a school teacher in London, originally from Scotland; • Claire Leiper (BA in Biology and English): a freelance trainer; • John Brownlie (BA in Physics): a multimedia specialist working with a Deaf organisation; • Dr Colin Donnell (PhD in Physics): an astronomy researcher. • Eileen Burns (BA in Physics): a school teacher of deaf children

14. Original plan • Agreed that Chemistry group lead and influence the others. • Suggested to start from definition and from that get to new signs. • Decided to keep draft film of every sign and record reasons for our ideas. • Suggested to put new signs on the bulletin board.

15. Research method • First stage – collect English terms needed for science in school • Second stage – collect and list existing signs. • Third stage – group to evaluate the existing signs • Fourth stage – group to discuss definitions of scientific concepts and use features of BSL to devise new BSL terms. Draft sign on web for group to evaluate. • Fifth stage - create a definition in BSL and film it; use text books and the group’s science expertise. • Sixth stage – put the definition and sign on the internet. • Seventh stage – translate the definitions into English.

16. Issues raised • Some new signs developed quickly by informal subgroup while filming definitions • Producing definitions difficult - how detailed? Follow a book? • Standardisation is not necessarily good • Bilingual access to the online dictionary – A to Z and handshape • New signs came up in many definitions – allows deaf children to build up a concept network

17. Issues raised • Interesting to see the morphology and sign roots e.g. chemical reaction etc. • Another sign family – MASS, WEIGHT, DENSITY • And VEIN, ARTERY, HEART • A lot of debate over the sign to use and we changed our minds e.g. INVERTEBRATE • HABITAT – 2:1 mapping or 1:1 mapping? • How will the project be received by teachers and children? • How do other minority languages develop technical vocabulary?

18. In summary… • Overall, we found that English was a very strong influence • Unique features of this project – largely Deaf only team using BSL • The team have achieved their target amount of signs after sensitive, careful agreement • We are now engaged in evaluating the project by interviewing 25 deaf young people and teachers of deaf children. • …which may help us plan for the next project.

19. Thank you Rachel.oneill@ed.ac.uk g.a.quinn@hw.ac.uk