Department of Languages & Intercultural Studies (LINCS)

Training the Trainers of the Trainers:team-working across boundaries

to turn a dream into a reality

Department of Languages & Intercultural Studies (LINCS)Centre for Translation & Interpreting Studies in Scotland (CTISS)

Christine WL Wilson & Rita McDade

Background

The Project (ToT)

Team-working & Collaboartion

Positive Aspects

Challenges

BACKGROUND

British Sign Language

(BSL)

Indigenous heritage language

(4th most used language in UK after English, Welsh, Scottish Gaelic)

BACKGROUND

BSL

PREFERRED LANGUAGE

Deaf Community

Scotland = 6,000+

UK = 60,000+

BACKGROUND

BSL

FIRST LANGUAGE

Children of Deaf Parents

- Deaf + hearing -

BACKGROUNDBSL

ADDITIONAL ACQUIRED LANGUAGE

Deaf deafened

family friends colleagues

(ad hoc / at school / evening classes)

BACKGROUNDBSL

USED AT WORK

interpreters

social workers

teachers of Deaf children...

BACKGROUND

BSL

NATURAL LANGUAGE

X artificial communication system

(Sign Supported English, Makaton ...)

BACKGROUND

BSL

ViSUAL-GESTURAL LANGUAGE

handshapes + lip-patterns + facial expression …

GRAMMAR + SYNTAX

BACKGROUNDBSL

X VISUAL VERSION

OF ENGLISH

BACKGROUNDBSL

X UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE

c. 6000 sign languages ?+ Creoles+ dialects

BACKGROUNDBSL

X WRITTEN FORM

NOTATION

(for transcription)

BACKGROUNDBSL

RECOGNISED AS MINORITY LANGUAGE OF UK

18 March 2003

BACKGROUND

4 September 2003

SIGN LANGUAGES RECOGNISED AS MINORITY LANGUAGES WITHIN EU

BACKGROUNDLEGISLATION

Disability Discrimination Act (2005)

Special Education Needs Discrimination Act (2001)

Human Rights Legislation

BACKGROUNDScottish Executive

 mainstreaming of equality

promotion of bilingualism + multilinguialism

BACKGROUNDScotland now

Standard Grade Exams in BSL

« Double the number of BSL Interpreters »

First Minster, Jack McConnell Question Time (31 March 2003)

BACKGROUNDPAST

BSLoutlawed - discouraged / devalued

BSL USERSoppression - inequality - lack of opportunities

BACKGROUNDSO ...

● BSL research < 1960s

● ONE BSL Dictionary 1992

● NO complete « grammar »

BACKGROUND« CATCH 22 »

HUGE TASK WILL -> ACTION

LACK

SKILLED PEOPLE

THE PROJECT

GRADUATE DIPLOMA IN TEACHING BSL TUTORS (ToT)

teaching began September 2005

THE PROJECT work began late spring 2003

SCOTTISH TRAINING STRATEGY WORKING GROUP

(STSWG)

THE PROJECTSTSWG

Heriot-Watt University

University of EdinburghSASLI (Scottish Association of Sign Language Interpreters)

SCoD (Scottish Council on Deafness)Forum of Providers of Social Work Services

to Deaf People (Scotland)

THE PROJECTTHE PROBLEM

shortage / competent BSL Tutors

lack of BSL resources + materials

almost no advanced level material

gaps in knowledge re: BSL

researchers = rare

THE PROJECTTHE SOLUTION

competent « teacher-trainers »

train other tutors

+ teach at advanced levels

+ develop materials

+ conduct research

THE PROJECT

cascade

of future

developments

THE PROJECT

SUPPORT & COLLABORATION

Equalities Unit (Scottish Executive)

Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA)

THE PROJECTFUNDING

Minister for Communities

£360,000

4 November 2004 develop + provide an award-bearing course benchmark for future developments

THE PROJECTCOURSE

at MA level 1-year FT equivalent (PT / 2 yrs) designed for sign language taught in sign language assessment in BSL

THE PROJECT MODULES

Language& Culture

Descriptionof BSL

AdvancedBSL

Studies:structure &

function

SignLinguistics

LanguageLearning

LanguageTeaching 1

ContrastiveLinguistics

LanguageTeaching 2

Visuality &Signed

Language

Socio-linguisticsof Signed

Languages

LanguageTeaching 3

Languagefor SpecialPurposes

THE PROJECT

STUDENTS

experienced BSL Tutors trained assessors all over Scotland English-language skills experience of FE / HE

TEAM-WORKING

AT DEVELOPMENT STAGE

across

institutional + professional boundaries

TEAM-WORKING

COURSE DEVELOPMENT + DELIVERY

import expertise into Scotland

PROFESSORS + RESEARCHERS < Australia; Denmark; California, San Diego +

Washington, USA

TEAM-WORKING

COURSE DEVELOPMENT + DELIVERY

+ collaboration between

guest lecturers different topics within modules - between modules

bridge continuity

TEAM-WORKING

COURSE DEVELOPMENT + DELIVERY

GUEST LECTURER TEAM

across

geographic - linguistic - cultural boundaries

TEAM-WORKING

HERIOT-WATT CORE TEAM

Lecturer (French-language background)Deaf BSL Tutor

+ Professor (BSL)+ Deaf Research Assistant

+ other LINCS lecturers

TEAM-WORKING

HYBRID TEAM

Guest Lecturer(s)

+ HW Core Team

COURSE COORDINATOR

COLLABORATION

POSTIVE ASPECTS OF TEAM WORKING ACROSS

BOUNDARIES

CHALLENGING ASPECTSOF TEAM WORKING ACROSS BOUNDARIES

POSTIVE ASPECTS

Role Models

to illustrate what can be achieved

two-way collaboration in classroom

POSTIVE ASPECTS

Broadening Horizons

distance from local politics

the world outside Scotland

POSTIVE ASPECTS

Exporting FROM Scotland !

Exchange programme (University of New Mexico, USA)

POSTIVE ASPECTS

Opening Minds

working across Deaf / hearing boundaries

ownership of BSL

POSTIVE ASPECTS

The L2 Experience

Family signs

Fruit signs

CHALLENGING ASPECTS

Cultural issuesLanguageUse of EnglishSelf-confidence

KEY TO SUCCESS

Role of the co-ordinator

ROLE OF THE CO-ORDINATOR

Cultural issues

CHALLENGES ?

support lecturer provide local examples

ROLE OF THE CO-ORDINATOR

Language issues

CHALLENGES ?

hearing person in BSL as 2nd language

(e.g. SVO)

ROLE OF THE CO-ORDINATOR

Language issues

CHALLENGES ?

Deaf Guest lecturers in BSL as 2nd/3rd language

- time

ROLE OF THE CO-ORDINATOR

Language issues

CHALLENGES ?

The Unexpected

ROLE OF THE CO-ORDINATOR

Use of English

CHALLENGES ?

Powerpoint / whiteboard English tag: « preparation »

ALSO « backwards » « slip of the tongue » « that was a low trick »

ROLE OF THE CO-ORDINATOR

Self-confidence of lecturers

CHALLENGES ?

moral support practical support

CONCLUSION

STUDENT TEAM FEEDBACK

“It’s working !”

CONCLUSION

Gallaudet University, USA

Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh

Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Greek, Russian, Spanish ...

+ BSL = “just another language”

CONTACT

R.McDade@hw.ac.uk

C.W.L.Wilson@hw.ac.uk

Tel: +44 131 451 4201