Help! Teaching Written English to Kazakh Deaf

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aaronbean

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Hello everyone!

Does anyone know of any curriculum or resources that could be used to teach written English to deaf ESL students?


My name is Aaron, and I'm a US Peace Corps volunteer (Peace Corps) serving in Kazakhstan. One part of my job is to help locals with learning English. I've become very involved with a local organization which represents the rights of deaf people in Kazakhstan. I'm not deaf or hard of hearing myself, and I have no experience with any sign languages. I have learned enough RSL (Russian Sign Language) to have comfortable conversations with my students, but I'm at a total loss with how to approach the curriculum. Their longterm goal: to attain a level of English which allows them to converse with other deaf or hoh people across the world.

Cheers and thanks for the support!
Aaron Bean
Peace Corps Volunteer - Aktobe, Kazakhstan
 
Kudos!

Hi Aaron,

I have a HOH kid and a Kazakh connection (lived there two years, three years in Kyrgyzstan, and my husband is Kazakh!). I am sending you a PM, but I wanted to tell you it's great what you are doing. We have a young Kazakh cousin who is Deaf and he's been hidden away by his family and not given a proper education. I think it's a real shame and wish we could adopt him.

Keep up the good work and have some Beshbarmak or nice, fatty mutten for me!

Missing Kaz,

Michelle

p.s. Sorry - I have no good advice on how to teach written English. Written English is hard, no? In the alternative, I bet they'd really appreciate books on ASL. I gave some books on ASL to the Deaf School here in El Salvador and they were pretty excited.
 
Hi Michelle,

Thanks for the words of encouragement and support. I promise to eat some beshbarmak for you and say a toast to you and your husband :) Great idea on the ASL book. My wife brought one from the US and I think it will be a great gift for the organization I'm working with!

Cheers,
Aaron
 
The important question here....are these children fluent in RSL. They must have fluency in their first language before learning written English.
 
The other question is, do they already know how to read and write Russian or any other language?

I don't know about the Kazakh school system but it used to be in Russia and Ukraine that deaf children were taught orally until high school. Then, they were finally taught sign language.

Bottom line is, it's hard to give advice on the best teaching methods without knowing something about the students' current language status.
 
And age.

So you're saying you have ONE kid or a class? And you use RSL with them? To teach written English?

Certainly possible, but you're going to need excellent RSL skills. The written formal doesn't have the nuances of spoken, so you could have luck. Depends on age, resources, number of kids, class settings...give us more info. I teach ESL but not to deaf. There are a few things that could help you, though.

don't they give you materials/training? :/
 
PS If you write in Russian, I can't help ya.

One, phonetics doesn't matter as much here. I can read Hebrew but I'm not going to converse in it. However, there are some Hebrew words where I know the root - and, based on what I know of verbs and nouns - the context.

You have to be able to talk or sign in the child's L1 to teach them. No one guesses how to read. It's not behavioral. You have to to use multiple developed cognitive processes to read. Reading is not a natural language.
 
shel90 said:
The important question here....are these children fluent in RSL. They must have fluency in their first language before learning written English.
Click to expand...

Hello, sorry for the late reply, for some reason I didn't get an email notification with your reply.

mmm.. regarding fluency.. the levels are varying, however I would say the younger students are not fluent. Complicating things as well is the fact that some of the students use the national language (Kazakh) and some Russian. Although they all utilize Russian Sign Language. And when we began the club I assumed they were all fluent in Russian Sign Language. I have since learned that is not the case. So we have changed goals slightly and are focusing on helping the kids who aren't fluent in RSL with their native language (RSL).

Thanks for the reply,
Aaron
 
Reba said:
The other question is, do they already know how to read and write Russian or any other language?

I don't know about the Kazakh school system but it used to be in Russia and Ukraine that deaf children were taught orally until high school. Then, they were finally taught sign language.

Bottom line is, it's hard to give advice on the best teaching methods without knowing something about the students' current language status.
Click to expand...

Some Kazakh, some Russian. Not completely fluent usually in either. And yes, the school system here has focused on teaching them orally although that is changing right now. To me it seems a disservice to the children, to abstain from fully teaching them sign until they graduate high school (in some instances). Also its a catalyst for them to create their own sign language and you end up with a "dialect?" of RSL which keeps them from communicating even with other RSL speakers.
 
TheOracle said:
And age.

So you're saying you have ONE kid or a class? And you use RSL with them? To teach written English?

Certainly possible, but you're going to need excellent RSL skills. The written formal doesn't have the nuances of spoken, so you could have luck. Depends on age, resources, number of kids, class settings...give us more info. I teach ESL but not to deaf. There are a few things that could help you, though.

don't they give you materials/training? :/
Click to expand...

A class of kids.. varies from 2-5. But its a pilot and starting in September there will likely be a larger group. And we use RSL to explain concepts, and then use ASL to spell out words. We also use the phonetic translation of the english words into the cyrillic alphabet to help with prononciation for the children who can voice the sounds.

My RSL skills are about average, but I have a native speaker who is fluent. She does the primary job of communicting and myself and others just facilitate. Its pretty interesting actually - in some sessions we have two translators (English - Russian - Russian Sign Language). But most of the time to facilitate communication we only utilize RSL. The age range is 8-17. he setting in in a soviet era school. large auditorium setting. Resources usually on hand are chalk board/chalk. Although if we pushed we could get access to an interactive board. And standard classroom materials are available from my home (markers, paper, pencils, pens, magazines, etc).

Aaron
 
I just recently registered, so I am not very familiar with protocol. If this gets to Aaron will you please send me an email? My wife was born and raised in Kazakhstan and was born profoundly deaf. She came to US with no knowledge of English, but now has a reasonable vocabulary. Her experience and knowledge could be of benefit to you and the deaf students in Kazakhstan. We are looking for a way to make a difference.
Sincerely,
idspud Darrell dccutforth@juno.com
 
How cool is this?! :popcorn:

Please keep us posted on how the pilot program is going. It would be awesome if there was way that we could set up a video conference between this class and mine in the fall, for the students to learn about each other's cultures.
 
I Notice it reading muplite on forum I am puzzled it observed it I aware it! serious!
 
I'm FOR IT!

deafbajagal said:
How cool is this?! :popcorn:

Please keep us posted on how the pilot program is going. It would be awesome if there was way that we could set up a video conference between this class and mine in the fall, for the students to learn about each other's cultures.
Click to expand...


We would love to setup an exchange! I tried to send you a private message, but couldn't figure it out/didn't have the right access. Feel free to shoot me an email at: bean.aa@gmail.com

Would be so cool to do this culture exchange!

Cheers,
Aaron
 
teaching English to RSL users

Hi Aaron, I am in Kyrgyzstan and working with Deaf people. I have 2 Deaf girls who live with me (1 of them I am adopting). I would love to learn what you have found out from others and what you are doing in Kazakhstan teaching the Deaf English. Thanks!!
romans10v13@gmail.com
Kathy
 
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