ASL and language development...questionnaire.

TheOracle

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So...I would *really* appreciate if it you guys could answer the following questions. Please note that this is not a thread on which methodologies are the best or what worked for you in school. It IS about deaf education, because obviously language acquisition is half of it. :)

All ASL signers are welcome to answer this. If you are a parent of a deaf ASL user, I would appreciate anything you have to add about your child's development.

This will help with my thesis. It's been bouncing around in my head for months, but I need more information first. I would like to knock some linguists on their heads someday. :) I came here wondering about late signers and their L1 fluency. So many of you shared stories about not having a "voice" until ASL came along. I'd like to explore that from a cognitive viewpoint someday, but I need more info.

I do ask about CI and HA, but not because I think it's actually relevant. But if it is, I should know.

Finally, I don't ask how you were educated or what kind of methods were used. At this moment in my thought process, that part isn't important. I am a loooong way off from conducting a study for a dissertation, but any good grad student has a research topic in mind from the get-go.

:ty:

muchos gracias
joyann <3
jaruscha@gmail.com

Select one: ____ Deaf _____ Hearing _____ Hard of Hearing

1. What is your age?
2. If you have some degree of deafness, explain and state when this event occurred:
3. What is your primary language? (Note: a primary language is the language you learned first. If you learned more than one language simultaneously, please state both.)
4. At what age did you learn ASL?
5. At what age did you begin speak? Additional comments are welcome.
6. Do you consider yourself fluent in ASL? (This is a question for both native prelingual and non native postlingual speakers.) Please describe your ASL skill here:
7. Rate your written English skills on a scale of 1 to 5:
  • 1 (very poor)
  • 2 (functional)
  • 3 (average)
  • 4 (above average)
  • 5 (exceptional/finished quality/could edit someone else's work).
Add'l comments:​
8. Rate your reading comprehension skills (English) on a scale of 1 to 5:
  • 1 (very poor)
  • 2 (functional)
  • 3 (average)
  • 4 (above average)
  • 5 (exceptional/finished quality/could edit someone else's work).
Add'l comments:​
9. At what age did you learn to read English?
10. Do you speak or use a language other than ASL or English at home? If so, explain:
11. Are any of your immediate family members native signers of ASL?
12. If any of your immediate family members use ASL, please explain who and describe their fluency:
13. When using sign, do you primarily use ASL or another form (such as SEE)?
14. Has anyone told you that you had a foreign ASL "accent"? (Like a hearing or late signer - not a regional accent.)
15. IF you learned ASL fluently before you learned English and your family speaks English at home as dominant language, will you share that? And may I PM you? :)
16. Finally, if you have used CI, HA, or any kind of hearing device, can you share what, how long, and age/number of years used?
 
Ooops...also, if you want to email me your answers, that's fine. I understand if some of you don't want to share info with others. Again, thank you!
 
*Answering on behalf of the little one (I know we aren't your target, but answering for the fun of it):

Select one: Deaf

1. What is your age? 5
2. If you have some degree of deafness, explain and state when this event occurred: bilaterally profound from birth
3. What is your primary language? (Note: a primary language is the language you learned first. If you learned more than one language simultaneously, please state both.) ASL
4. At what age did you learn ASL? Started at 13 months
5. At what age did you begin speak? Additional comments are welcome. Began speaking at 20 months (shortly after CI activation)
6. Do you consider yourself fluent in ASL? (This is a question for both native prelingual and non native postlingual speakers.) Please describe your ASL skill here: Fluent, yes
7. Rate your written English skills on a scale of 1 to 5: 3 (average) X, testing age appropriate, though I think she's low on vocabulary level compared with hearing peers

Add'l comments:
8. Rate your reading comprehension skills (English) on a scale of 1 to 5: 4 (above average) X, based on age

Add'l comments:
9. At what age did you learn to read English? Began earlier, has kicked in this year, age appropriate though def. not fluent yet (5)
10. Do you speak or use a language other than ASL or English at home? If so, explain: No
11. Are any of your immediate family members native signers of ASL? No
12. If any of your immediate family members use ASL, please explain who and describe their fluency: Parents: roughly same level as child
13. When using sign, do you primarily use ASL or another form (such as SEE)? ASL, though parents often accidentally use English word order
14. Has anyone told you that you had a foreign ASL "accent"? (Like a hearing or late signer - not a regional accent.) Not yet, people typically don't notice she's deaf unless I mention it, likely just think she's 5 and developing her speech
15. IF you learned ASL fluently before you learned English and your family speaks English at home as dominant language, will you share that? And may I PM you? Yes, although she'll struggle to read your PM and I'll edit her response to make us look good :laugh2:
16. Finally, if you have used CI, HA, or any kind of hearing device, can you share what, how long, and age/number of years used? 2 CIs: 1 for 3+ years (@nearly2YO), one for 2+ years (@nearly 3YO)
 
*Answering on behalf of the little one (I know we aren't your target, but answering for the fun of it):

Select one: Deaf

1. What is your age? 5
2. If you have some degree of deafness, explain and state when this event occurred: bilaterally profound from birth
3. What is your primary language? (Note: a primary language is the language you learned first. If you learned more than one language simultaneously, please state both.) ASL
4. At what age did you learn ASL? Started at 13 months
5. At what age did you begin speak? Additional comments are welcome. Began speaking at 20 months (shortly after CI activation)
6. Do you consider yourself fluent in ASL? (This is a question for both native prelingual and non native postlingual speakers.) Please describe your ASL skill here: Fluent, yes
7. Rate your written English skills on a scale of 1 to 5: 3 (average) X, testing age appropriate, though I think she's low on vocabulary level compared with hearing peers

Add'l comments:
8. Rate your reading comprehension skills (English) on a scale of 1 to 5: 4 (above average) X, based on age

Add'l comments:
9. At what age did you learn to read English? Began earlier, has kicked in this year, age appropriate though def. not fluent yet (5)
10. Do you speak or use a language other than ASL or English at home? If so, explain: No
11. Are any of your immediate family members native signers of ASL? No
12. If any of your immediate family members use ASL, please explain who and describe their fluency: Parents: roughly same level as child
13. When using sign, do you primarily use ASL or another form (such as SEE)? ASL, though parents often accidentally use English word order
14. Has anyone told you that you had a foreign ASL "accent"? (Like a hearing or late signer - not a regional accent.) Not yet, people typically don't notice she's deaf unless I mention it, likely just think she's 5 and developing her speech
15. IF you learned ASL fluently before you learned English and your family speaks English at home as dominant language, will you share that? And may I PM you? Yes, although she'll struggle to read your PM and I'll edit her response to make us look good :laugh2:
16. Finally, if you have used CI, HA, or any kind of hearing device, can you share what, how long, and age/number of years used? 2 CIs: 1 for 3+ years (@nearly2YO), one for 2+ years (@nearly 3YO)

Grendel. The Love shines through!!!!!! worm fuzzy here!
:wave::wave:
 
Select one: Deaf

1. What is your age? 47
2. If you have some degree of deafness, explain and state when this event occurred: Was hoh at birth, got progressively worse and at age 42 lost it all due to calcium spreading. The date was 5/19/2006.
3. What is your primary language? (Note: a primary language is the language you learned first. If you learned more than one language simultaneously, please state both.) Primary English, learning ASL
4. At what age did you learn ASL? Started learning at age 17, then stopped, started again at 38.
5. At what age did you begin speak? Additional comments are welcome. I was 3-4 before speaking at all. Doctors now think it is due to my hearing loss, but at the time the psychologist thought it was because my brothers would not let me. My brothers hated hearing "the baby cry".
6. Do you consider yourself fluent in ASL? (This is a question for both native prelingual and non native postlingual speakers.) Please describe your ASL skill here: Not fluent. I am better with PSE, but I am learning more and more each day.
7. Rate your written English skills on a scale of 1 to 5: 5

8. Rate your reading comprehension skills (English) on a scale of 1 to 5: 1

9. At what age did you learn to read English? 5-6
10. Do you speak or use a language other than ASL or English at home? If so, explain: no - English only
11. Are any of your immediate family members native signers of ASL? no
12. If any of your immediate family members use ASL, please explain who and describe their fluency: N/A
13. When using sign, do you primarily use ASL or another form (such as SEE)? PSE
14. Has anyone told you that you had a foreign ASL "accent"? (Like a hearing or late signer - not a regional accent.) no
15. IF you learned ASL fluently before you learned English and your family speaks English at home as dominant language, will you share that? And may I PM you? :) N/A
16. Finally, if you have used CI, HA, or any kind of hearing device, can you share what, how long, and age/number of years used? Had 3 different BTE hearing aids from age 7-10. Nothing again until age 38 when I got my 2 ITE hearing aids through Vocational Rehab in Columbia, MO. Had those for 3 years before having a minor accident they were destroyed. They got smashed by a desk chair and my foot.
 
Select one: _x___ Deaf _____ Hearing _____ Hard of Hearing

1. What is your age? 48 this year.
2. If you have some degree of deafness, explain and state when this event occurred: Severely-Deaf from birth. Born 2 months premature.
3. What is your primary language? (Note: a primary language is the language you learned first. If you learned more than one language simultaneously, please state both.) English is my primary language, raised oral and mainstreamed.
4. At what age did you learn ASL? Starting learning ASL and Auslan 2 years ago.
5. At what age did you begin speak? Additional comments are welcome. Said my first word just after one year old.
6. Do you consider yourself fluent in ASL? (This is a question for both native prelingual and non native postlingual speakers.) Please describe your ASL skill here: Only know limited ASL, but can understand and follow Auslan, quite well, enough to hold and respond in sign to a decent conversation.
7. Rate your written English skills on a scale of 1 to 5: 5
1 (very poor)
2 (functional)
3 (average)
4 (above average)
5 (exceptional/finished quality/could edit someone else's work).
Add'l comments:
8. Rate your reading comprehension skills (English) on a scale of 1 to 5: 5 (despite being dyslexic as well)
1 (very poor)
2 (functional)
3 (average)
4 (above average)
5 (exceptional/finished quality/could edit someone else's work).
Add'l comments:
9. At what age did you learn to read English? Younger than 5. Although I remembering comparing the written word to the way I was then speaking at age 7. 10. Do you speak or use a language other than ASL or English at home? If so, explain: I can read and write in Thai and also my husband's ethnic language; speaking - not good.
11. Are any of your immediate family members native signers of ASL? No. No native signers in my immediate family.
12. If any of your immediate family members use ASL, please explain who and describe their fluency: My younger children are learning Auslan and ASL with me. They can understand basic requests and simple statements.
13. When using sign, do you primarily use ASL or another form (such as SEE)? AUSLAN and some ASL (definitely not SEE)
14. Has anyone told you that you had a foreign ASL "accent"? (Like a hearing or late signer - not a regional accent.) No, not to date.
15. IF you learned ASL fluently before you learned English and your family speaks English at home as dominant language, will you share that? And may I PM you? N/A.
16. Finally, if you have used CI, HA, or any kind of hearing device, can you share what, how long, and age/number of years used?
i was introduced to my first hearing aids when I was 11, wore them for a year, then discarded them because they irritated me, the sounds I could hear were amplified to the point of hurting my ears and giving me headaches; I lived a lot of the time while growing up in tropical climates, the humidity would cause severe chaffing and ear infections; I did a lot of swimming when I was younger and other sports, the hearing aids were a problem more than a help; having to buy batteries all the time was also an unnecesssary expense; as an adult they interferred with my ability to drive safely. I did try them again at age 15 and as an adult very briefly, but discovered I was more comfortable without them. Haven't worn them in over 20 odd years now. They are also too expensive to buy these days. As for CIs, when I researched into them, would never consider them because a) they are very expensive; b) it is invasive surgery; c) they are just glorified HAs not a "cure-all" plus I am happy being Severely-Deaf because that is how God made me and it is for a Purpose.[/COLOR]
 
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