Family ASL: Bimodal Bilingual Acquisition by Deaf Children of Hearing Parents

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Project Summary/Abstract This project tracks the acquisition of both signed and spoken language, as well as areas of non-linguistic development, by young deaf children whose hearing parents are learning American Sign Language (ASL) with them, and in addition it documents the parents’ process of learning ASL. It is unique in its focus on children whose input includes both fluent ASL signers and parents who are beginning learners themselves; as well as in its tracking of the parents’ development alongside their children. The topic is of critical importance for the well-being of children born deaf. Even with hearing technology such as cochlear implants, deaf children generally start off behind their peers with normal hearing in language, cognitive, and academic areas. There is considerable debate regarding the potential usefulness of signing to close this gap. However, previous research with children whose deaf parents sign with them from birth shows that early exposure to a full, natural language can form a solid base on which to build further development. The question addressed here is whether extensive early input to parents who are just learning to sign, alongside a bimodal bilingual approach in school-based programs, can also provide a bridge for the much more prevalent situation when deaf children are born into hearing families. The project will recruit families in which hearing parents of deaf children enroll them in early childhood programs at school for the deaf employing a bimodal bilingual approach, where children and parents are provided input in ASL as well as spoken English. The first study will include families from several different schools, engaging in data collection Fairs during which both standardized and lab- developed tests will be administered. These tests will examine children’s and parents’ development of ASL in detail, as well as children’s development in English, several non-linguistic areas of cognitive development, and social-emotional development. The second study will take a longitudinal approach that adds an ASL Specialist to visit participating families in order to provide additional input and instruction above what they receive from school. Language samples and other data will be collected during both 6-week ‘on’ and 6-week ‘off’ phases, in order to assess the effectiveness of this intervention. Analyses will start with documenting development in both children and parents, as there is no information to refer to; further analyses will examine language growth within families, and examine developmental relationships between parental and child ASL, child sign and speech, and child language and non-linguistic areas.