Educating Deaf Students as Bilingual

ロウジ　ヲ　バイリンガル　トシテ　ソダテル　ト　イウコト

Tang, Gladys

Mother Tongue, Heritage Language, and Bilingual Education Research Association

ボゴ　ケイショウゴ　バイリンガル　キョウイク　ケンキュウカイ

バイモーダル・バイリンガリズム

ろうバイリンガリズム

ろう教育

sign language

bimodal bilingualism

sign bilingualism

deaf education

Invited Papers

The paper introduces the concept of sign bilingual education against the backdrop of the latest development of sign linguistics research, in particular, studies involving the simultaneous acquisition of a signed language and a spoken language--bimodal bilingualism. While research is ongoing, some findings have begun to shed light on the optimal conditions for supporting this mode of acqisition in the school environment. The paper argues that a co-enrollment environment, where deaf and hearing participants, students and teachers alike, support each other in teaching and learning, offers one such condition. Taking the Sign Bilingualism and Co-enrollment Education Programme conducted in Hong Kong (henceforth HK) as an example, the paper describes how Hong Kong Sign Language (henceforth HKSL) -Cantonese input in the classroom nurtures bimodal bilingual acquisition of deaf hearing students, as well as hearing teachers thereby creating a barrier-free education community.