TISLR 8: Enabling Full Access for Deaf & Hearing Americans and Increasing Representation of Deaf Americans

语言学研究表明，人类语言有两大类：口语和聋人社区自然进化的手语。TISLR(“手语研究的理论问题”)会议是讨论和介绍手语语言学和心理语言学成果的最重要的国际场所。TISLR会议日益注重国际--特别是注重跨语言、跨文化工作--对手语研究至关重要。在国家科学基金会的支持下，将在巴塞罗那举行的TISLR会议(2004年9月29日至10月2日)上提供完整的美国手语到英语和英语到ASL的口译，这是自1986年在罗切斯特大学举行的第一次TISLR会议以来举行的一系列会议中的第8次。该项目旨在确保在巴塞罗那TISLR会议上报告的语言研究对于本身是聋人签名者的美国研究人员来说是完全可用的。该项目还将使来自美国和加拿大大部分地区的聋人学者能够将学术演讲充分翻译成英语，并将促进聋人学者和不懂ASL的听力学者之间的非正式互动。最后，该项目将为多达8名聋人研究生和本科生参加TISLR会议提供旅行支持。通过提供美国手语的口译，该项目为探索手语语言学的美国科学界提供了必要的基础设施。该项目还将通过为聋人学生参加国际研究会议创造新的机会，促进科学界的发展。聋人在美国科学界历来是一个代表性不足的群体。通过允许聋人学生在TISLR参与语言学和心理语言学研究，将促进美国手语的母语和近母语签名者参与语言研究。最后，对手语以及儿童如何习得手语的语言学研究对聋人教育实践具有重要意义。在这种情况下，科学研究和教育实践紧密相连。

Linguistic research has demonstrated that there are two major classes of human languages: spoken languages and the naturally-evolved signed languages of Deaf communities. The TISLR ("Theoretical Issues in Sign Language Research") conferences have been the most important international venue for discussion and presentation of results on the linguistics and psycholinguistics of signed languages. The increasingly international focus of the TISLR meetings-specifically, the focus on crosslinguistic, crosscultural work-is crucial in the study of signed languages. With National Science Foundation support, complete American Sign Language (ASL)-to-English and English-to-ASL interpretation will be provided at the TISLR conference in Barcelona (September 29-October 2, 2004), the 8th in a series of meetings that stretches back to the first TISLR conference held at the University of Rochester in 1986. This project seeks to ensure that the linguistic research reported at the Barcelona TISLR meeting is fully accessible to American researchers who are themselves Deaf signers. This project will also enable adequate interpretation into English of scholarly presentations by Deaf scholars from the U.S. and much of Canada, and will foster informal interactions between Deaf scholars and hearing scholars who do not know ASL. Lastly, this project will provide travel support for up to 8 Deaf graduate and undergraduate students to attend the TISLR meeting.By providing interpretation into ASL, this project provides necessary infrastructure for the American scientific community that is exploring linguistics of signed languages. This project will also grow that scientific community by creating new opportunities for the participation of Deaf students at an international research conference. The Deaf are a historically underrepresented group in American science. By enabling the participation at TISLR of Deaf students in linguistic and psycholinguistic research, the participation of native and near-native signers of ASL in linguistic research will be fostered. Lastly, linguistic research on signed languages and on how they are acquired by children makes a fundamental contribution to practice in deaf education. In this instance, scientific research and educational practice are closely linked.