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Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education Commons

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Deaf

Disability and Equity in Education

Theses/Dissertations

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Full-Text Articles in Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education

American Sign Language: Culture, Community, & Identity, Hannah Malenfant Apr 2013

American Sign Language: Culture, Community, & Identity, Hannah Malenfant

Senior Theses and Projects

How does American Sign Language influence the discovery of self and identity in Deaf adults? My thesis argues that American Sign Language is an intricate part of Deaf identity and deaf children and their families need to begin to learn American Sign Language upon discovery of hearing loss. Not only does it serve as a form of communication that is the most natural and practical, but it also serves as a cultural bond. This was an ethnographic study with interviews of pairs and individuals. I found that there was often a conflict between Deaf and hearing culture. There were also …


Acculturation And Identity Development Of Deaf Ethnic Minorities, Glennise Candice Schlinger Dec 2012

Acculturation And Identity Development Of Deaf Ethnic Minorities, Glennise Candice Schlinger

Masters Theses

This study examined whether experiences in the family and the education systems could influence Deaf ethnic identity development. Data were collected via administration of the Deaf Acculturation Scale (DAS). Participants’ responses were assessed as outlined by the developers of the DAS (Maxwell-McCaw & Zea, 2011). Results suggested that parents’ attitude towards their child’s deafness may affect the deaf individual’s identity development. Semi-structured interviews were also conducted with four deaf ethnic minority participants: One Venezuelan American and three African American. Two hearing parents (both mothers) also participated in the interview: one Venezuelan American and one African American. Thematic analysis was used …