The Purpose of Learning ASL

Hello all!

The picture shown right is the sign for I LOVE YOU in ASL. It's a combination of all of the letters I, L, Y from the manual alphabet in one sign. :D

It was an interesting week for me at the MTC. The missionaries are progressing very well with ASL. They're starting to grasp the basic concept of how signs really work. Funny enough, when we describe some of the most simple words in the English language by gestures such as "car", that gesture is usually the right sign for the word "car" in ASL. They all have memorized several phrases in ASL for basic communication.

I would like to recall a story about what happened in class several days ago. When I was teaching them how to sign ASL vocabulary, we decided it was time for a language game to help them learn ASL in a fun way. We all got together and had a finger-spelling competition. Boy, it was fierce... everyone was into it and finger-spelled each word ridiculously fast! The native signers had a very easy time winning because their hands were already accustomed to spelling the manual alphabet of ASL. It was interesting to see how non-native signers learn how to spell with their hands and fingers. It's as hard as learning a new craft such as knitting or drawing figures. I felt really good because they all were enthusiastic to get better with the language. They truly understand their purpose of learning ASL in the MTC.

All of them will serve in areas with deaf people using sign language. Missionaries can choose whether if they want to learn or ignore ASL. Once they enter the field of work, they will be instantly immersed into the deaf world using ASL 90% of the day. They know that they MUST learn ASL here in the MTC. Their calling is to proselytize in ASL and they expect US to do the best as we can. Missionaries will spend the next 18-24 months using ASL most of the time, and for them to help the people understand their unique message, they have to be proficient in the proselytizing language.

Suppose you went to Italy for vacation, and you can speak a little Italian, and you get in a situation where you feel overwhelmed by its culture and language difficulties. This happens with ASL as well. The missionaries will be put into an entirely different culture, known as the Deaf Culture (the next blog will be about this), and language is not that easy to follow at first sight. It is the same with all other languages and cultures over the world.

Missionaries come to the MTC with a strong desire to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ and yet, we're training them to teach deaf people using ASL. It's definitely not easy, and becoming a master teacher takes years and years of practicing and understanding the language. By their desire to serve and share His message with all deaf people in the world, they WILL learn ASL and do their best to bring the message to them like native speakers. It is true that some missionaries come home after two years being fluent in that language. I believe that this group in the MTC right now has potential that every missionary will be fluent once they finish their missions.

Here's a link to the video of a comedian who's perfectly fluent in ASL interpreting a rap song. He starts out signing exact English with no ASL. A deaf person will not understand the song until Keith Wann decides to start using ASL then the deaf people will finally understand music. Myself, I don't understand music and this is one example of how I can understand music through ASL.

VIDEO OF KEITH WANN - ICE ICE BABY

I want you to recognize the differences between signed English and ASL. It is a BIG difference, and ASL is definitely better for the deaf people. This is why the missionaries at the MTC learn ASL so they can communicate and send His message to all deaf people fluently.

One more video for your pleasure. I find it very pleasing to watch and it's in BSL (British Sign Language). DEPARTURE LOUNGE

Introduction to ASL and the MTC

Hello everyone!

I have to apologize for the late posting tonight, but it's still Tuesday!

First of all, I want all of you to be aware of what American Sign Language (ASL) is and what does the Missionary Training Center have to do with ASL? ASL is a language primarily used by the deaf community to communicate with each other using hands, facial expressions and body language. ASL came to origin when Laurent Clerc from France visited Thomas Gallaudet, who had a friend who had a deaf daughter and wanted an education for her, to teach him sign language. Clerc and Gallaudet founded the first deaf school in America in 1817 (for more details, click here). The first picture is of Laurent Clerc while the second one is Thomas Gallaudet.

Today, over two million people use ASL to communicate. American Sign Language is now officially recognized as a separate language from English in several states. Many colleges, universities and high schools offer courses in ASL.

Now, what does the Missionary Training Center have to do with ASL?

The Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-Day Saints sends missionaries all over the world speaking in hundreds of different languages, dialects and so on... The church also sends ASL missionaries mainly to big cities in America such as Los Angeles, San Jose, New York City, Houston, Miami, Phoenix and many other cities to teach the deaf who is interested in joining the church. I served my mission for two years in the California Los Angeles mission and it was an awesome experience for me.

The MTC is a place where missionaries gather to learn the language and prepare before leaving into the actual field of work. Usually, missionaries called to proselytize in ASL stay in the MTC for 9 weeks to learn the language. We, as MTC teachers, have the responsibility to faciliate their learning to becoming proficient ASL signers before the leave to work in their areas where they have been called to serve.

We had a new group of missionaries who arrived last week Wednesday. There are 18 missionaries, 12 elders (male) and 6 sisters (female) called to serve in various cities over the United States in ASL! We have 6 skilled signers, 5 of them are deaf and one's a certified interpreter, and the rest of the group knows a little ASL or none at all. They're about to embark the journey of mastering the language in 9 weeks!

The next blog will be more about the missionaries and their progress in learning the language. The next post will be much more fun to read, I promise!

Please leave a comment if you have any questions or comments about the blog!

Hello Everyone!

Konichiwa tomodachi!

Welcome to my new blog.

I'm Austin. I'm Deaf, and I'm a student at Brigham Young University (BYU, www.byu.edu) majoring in Animation. I'm applying to the program this April and hopefully I'll be good enough to make it in! I work at the Missionary Training Center (www.mtc.byu.edu) in Provo, Utah teaching missionaries American Sign Language (ASL). I was raised bilingually so ASL and English are both my native languages.

The first post will be this Tuesday January 19, 2010, and it'll be about learning ASL in 9 weeks!