2nd L (F–10) 9-10
Understanding
Language awareness - Elaboration 6
- identifying historical events, government policies and educational
initiatives that have impacted on the status of Auslan and the identity of the
Deaf community, such as ALLP, DDA, the mainstreaming of deaf students
- researching the nature of International Sign, including its relationship to
national signed languages and its use by deaf people
- exploring how deaf people around the world build shared group identity, for
example through gathering formally as national and international communities
through activities such as Deaf film festivals, performing arts or sporting
events such as Deaf Way, Australian Deaf Games, Deaflympics, and how these
contribute to language building, language preservation and greater awareness of
signed languages
- analysing subjective measures of language vitality, such as societal attitudes
towards Auslan or the perceived strength of the language identity group, and
identifying challenges facing Auslan in terms of societal attitudes, provision
of resources, access, education systems and social networks
- analysing the status and use of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander signed
languages and comparing these to Auslan
- appreciating the impact of the use of Auslan in settings such as education,
health care and different workplace settings in terms of the evolution of the
language and specialised ter- minology
- analysing representations of deaf people and sign language in the Australian
media and wider community, making comparisons with representations of other
languages and cultures
- exploring the role of the Deaf ecosystem in language and cultural maintenance
- investigating how Auslan and Deaf culture are promoted in the wider community,
for example, through the influence of organisations such as Deaf Australia, of
high-profile individuals such as activists or actors and of events such as NWDP
Deaf Festival, Australian Deaf Games or Deaf art exhibitions
- considering how processes of language building and evolution may expand
existing Auslan linguistic and cultural resources in the Australian community
- investigating programs and initiatives that maintain and strengthen Auslan
use, such as school language programs; bilingual education and research
programs; recording, archiving and documentation of the language; and the
establishment of websites and databases
- appreciating the importance of documenting and promoting Auslan in raising
community awareness of the richness and value of signed languages
- recognising that Auslan requires maintenance, development and documentation,
considering historical and contemporary circumstances which have either
contributed to or impeded these processes, for example the use of technology
such as ELAN for capturing and documenting the language
- considering domains where Auslan may grow in the future, and contributing to
localised Auslan signbanks on specific topics, for example, creating a
bank/dictionary of signs used by deaf students and interpreters in Year 9
Science
- researching the status and recognition of signed languages in other countries,
for example, New Zealand, the USA, the UK, the Scandinavian nations, considering
issues such as language rights, documentation and development efforts
- identifying the changing status of sites of significance in different
international Deaf communities, for example, the loss of Deaf clubs or closure
of deaf schools in some countries, comparing this to the Australian context, and
reflecting on the implications of these changes over time for the Deaf community
and for the status of Auslan
- recognising different philosophical and social views about deafness,
considering the impact of varying attitudes on a deaf person’s understanding of
their rights and how they are represented and perceived in wider society
- explaining the influence of other signed languages such as BSL, ISL and ASL on
Auslan over different periods of time and in different domains of language use,
and discussing reasons for such influence
- looking at style shifts in domains where English is in closer contact with
Auslan, such as the use of more English-like structures in educational settings
- discussing the concept of ‘language health’ and how it applies to Auslan, for
example by designing a chart of relevant factors such as status (social,
economic, historical), demography (number and distribution of users) and
institutional support (media, government, education, religion, industry,
culture)