Originally Posted by Calphool

Hi Seki900,

I read your story with great interest. Some day it would be very interesting to collect stories from the deaf community about their school experiences. Around here, the public school system has a lot of trouble dealing with deaf kids -- especially in small districts.

My wife learned ASL over the past few years, but she isn't certified yet. A year ago or so, she applied for a teacher's aid position at a small elementary school near our home. She wasn't looking necessarily for a job working with deaf kids, but she did list her ASL training on her resume, because it was recent schooling. She was very surprised when she was asked at the interview if she would mind being an interpretter for a little girl in first grade. My wife explained that she wasn't certified, but the principal still wanted her to accept the position. She declined the offer, because she felt like it wouldn't be ethical, and the girl deserved someone who could clearly communicate and teach ASL. My wife also told the principal that he needed to go learn about the law in our state. She did meet with the little girl and her parents, and explained to them that they needed to find an advocate to make sure that their daughter was supported properly, because the school administrators clearly didn't know what they were doing.