Sign Language Isn’t Only for the Deaf, Part IV: Why Learn How to Sign?

“Necessity is the mother of invention” is a saying that couldn’t be more aptly used than in the formation of sign language. In my past few blogs on this subject, I hope you have gained some understanding of the enormous amount of work and creativity that resulted in what we know today as official sign languages. But, given this and all of the technological wizardry that can help the voiceless be heard, you may still ask: Why should anyone who isn’t deaf learn how to sign?

Personally, as someone who is speech disabled, the most advanced technological device could never replace what comes directly from my heart and mind. I know that a machine can say, “I want to go to dinner,” “Good morning,” and all the other things that I may want to communicate. But, if I want to speak with someone about politics, religion, and philosophy or just offer my personal perspective on life, I want to have the ability to express myself in my own words and in my own way. Sign language provides this.

I am only one of thousands (or perhaps millions) around the globe who is speech impaired. My life is much fuller because I learned how to sign, so I strongly believe that people with ailments like stuttering and speech loss due to illness can also have the same experience.

For instance, those afflicted with Down syndrome have a tongue that is too long so it is difficult for them to speak. According to http://www.altonweb.com/cs/downsyndrome/index.htm?page=useofsigns.html, “Creating signs comes earlier for many children than saying the corresponding word, both for children with Down syndrome and normally developing youngsters. Perhaps the oral motor planning required for talking is more complex than instructions for the hands in signing.”

Additionally, although sign language is also visual, the blind are not totally excluded from using a very important element in signing, called fingerspelling. Looking at the story of Helen Keller, I am reminded that perhaps the most famous blind and deaf person first discovered language through fingerspelling, “the process of spelling out words by using signs that correspond to the letters of the word. There are lots of times when fingerspelling is used, most commonly for naming people, places, movies, books, and brands. Or maybe there is a sign, but it is just as fast or faster to fingerspell the word.” (See: http://www.lifeprint.com/asl101/fingerspelling/fingerspelling.htm)

Before Helen Keller understood language, she learned words. She learned her first word – her first meaningful message – through fingerspelling. Helen Keller wrote, “We walked down the path to the well-house, attracted by the fragrance of the honey-suckle with which it was covered. Someone was drawing water and my teacher placed my hand under the spout. As the cool stream gushed over one hand she spelled into the other the word water, first slowly, then rapidly. I stood still, my whole attention fixed upon the motions of her fingers. Suddenly I felt a misty consciousness as of something forgotten, a thrill of returning thought, and somehow the mystery of language was revealed to me.” (See: http://www.rnib.org.uk/xpedio/groups/public/documents/publicwebsite/public_keller.hcsp#P31_3846)

Of course, there are many people who don’t learn sign language out of necessity, but do it anyway. When I attended school to learn ASL (American Sign Language) there was one other person like me who was speech disabled. Besides my Deaf instructors, everyone else I met was hearing. Some had a close relative, friend or co-worker who was Deaf and it was important for them to be able to communicate fully with them. For most of the students, though, learning ASL was fun and, like the study of any foreign language, provided a new way of looking at the world. This was 2006 and I then discovered that many American high schools and colleges offered ASL to satisfy foreign language requirements.

This popularity of sign language is also evident among parents who use sign language to teach their babies and toddlers to communicate. “Since hand-eye coordination develops sooner than acquisition of verbal skills, infants can learn simple signs for common words such as eat, sleep, more, hug, play, cookie, and teddy bear before they are able to produce understandable speech.” (See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baby_sign_language) As a result, many studies have proposed that children who began signing before they could speak have an advantage over those who didn’t, like better comprehension, the ability to verbalize their needs earlier, as well as less frustration at getting their basic needs met.

Sometimes I just enjoy the fact that I can use ASL to talk with someone across a crowded room or in a theater or other area where it should be quiet. I’ve also loved using ASL on numerous occasions when I’m in traffic, like at a four-way intersection where no one seems to know who should go first. I just naturally go to my hands and utilize signs that I know everyone will understand. It works like a charm.

If you don’t know how to sign but are interested, I hope you’ll join me for my next blog. I’ll give you some easy steps to help you start learning this incredible language that is not just for the deaf, but for everyone.