Sign language enviroment in Deaf School

There's something new in deaf education movement in Sweden now. Three girls from Östervångsskolan, a deaf school in Lund, a city located near Malmoe in southern Sweden wrote an entry in Deaf Forum in SDR's (Swedish National Association of the Deaf) network. I can understand her. I was feeling like that when I was in elementary school. Teachers who don't use sign language when they are talking with each other.

Anyway, they had set up a blog and letting in all people to support them. Unfortunately, the blog is in swedish and swedish language. If theres something new, then I will report here.

http://foljvarkamp.blogg.se

This is what they wrote: (translated, maybe there's a little swenglish :-) )

Hello!

I just want to write and tell you about my situation right now, because I want know what you all thinks about this. I'm 9th grade student in Östervångsskolan.

Some students and I was sick of the bad sign language enviroment in the school. Dining room is a room where both students and staff taking up their lunchtime. The staff often have their table by themselves. Not only hearing staff, sometimes there's deaf staff!

They don't use sign language at all (the hearing teachers), and we're feeling bad that we're not able to see what they are talking about when they can see what we're talking about.

Once we said to teacher who was talking with someone at our table we're seated at, but the teacher just freaked out. That's just one story...

In addititon, the hearing teachers sometimes talking with each other in class rooms. When we was reading books or working on something, my hard of hearing classmate told me that she heard her name in the conversation between two teachers and her grade was now mentioned 3 weeks earlier. If it was another hard of hearing there and heard that, it should not been so good.

I was soo fucking angry, teachers are forbidden to do like that in hearing school! Feeling like that they're making use of our hearing loss. Yesterday another student did hear that girl's name and we told that to teachers. "Ohh, sorry" - we already heard that 1000 times. There's also staff with no sign language skills at one of school's dormitories, a guy moved to another one because that he didn't enjoy there.

There's also somebody at recreation centre who don't know sign language so well, and they did employ a new with no sign language skills (the letter says that she will learn, but why we have to wait? It takes time to learn a whole new language!). It's a deaf school and SPM (National Agency for Special Schools for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing) have its profile that says bilinguaism and it's misleading because Östervångsskolan don't achieved that. Don't know how it's going in another deaf schools.

Before last christmas we (student council) went to the principal and told what we thinks about this situation. I did suggest a rule that all in dining room should use sign language, the principal said: "No, we can't do so."

She also mentioned that deaf staff also had complaints on the bad sign language enviroment last year and surveys were sent out to all staff at the school. Yes, there's still no changes. I mean, no improvements.

She also mention that we should have a survey for students. I'm dissatisfied because all should use sign language if deaf people are in the room, of course. Anyway, we did accept that and the student council made a decision together with the principal that they should send the before survey to us so we could remake and sign those questions in front of a camera. Then show the film for students who will answer those questions in paper.

Yesterday, a teacher said "Now you all should fill this survey". We all were suprised that the management of school ignored the decision we made together. I'm absolutely not satisfied on the questions, feeling like that those questions are not clearly.. shadowed. "Do the teachers use sign language in class room?" They almost always do it. And we was only able to tick on these alternatives "Always, almost always, sometimes". Feeling like they want the statistic looking good.

I and other people in student council was considered to resign. The sense was that we should fight against the management of the school instead for sitting in council and accepting everything, they all are running over us. They aren't better than us.

I has been considered, in a IB gymnasium (=like high school and college. Different education system in sweden), they only speak english all time. A international gymnasium. Employees on that school shouldn't only know a few words in english, they should have pretty good english. Does it mean that sign language is less worth as language? I mean that all teachers/staff (cleaner, painter, and so on... it doesnt matter.) who don't command sign language so well or dont know sign language at all. In a hearing school they should never allow something like that.

"Anna got B in matemathic, and she.." in front of all students in class room. Neither employ someone who only know a few words in swedish.

We (I and two girls) are considering to report this to HO (Disability Ombudsman) or Swedish National Agency for Education because that we thinks it acutally is about discrimination.

From SPM website: "In a enviroment there all is communicating in sign language where deaf and hard of hearing children have another opportunity to etablish contact with both students and staff. The common language gives the children the confident to whole time understand and being understand by other. The mutual of the language is important for the improvement of students and possibilities to identify with other students." Whole time.. It should be like a dream!!

"The staff of schools are bilingualist - they know both swedish and sign language." Sure, everyone do?

In addition, a link: http://www.skolverket.se/sb/d/1320/a/5664 New law!!! (sorry not translated, its an article about insulting treatment)

Now, I'm curious what you all thinks? Are all of this discrimination? Deafness is our functional disabilitiy and they are making use of our hearing loss.

You all from Östervångsskolan who are reading this, should know that I'm writing this as a private person. Not as chairman of student council.

// Isabella Hagnell

Integration is the answer

Since I heard about the gallaudet protest activity and been watching its reports at deafread.com, I became hooked into deafread.com. I see that as a process in my own way into deafhood. There's a thing I see among deafread.com bloggers/vloggers, they all want to empower deaf community. Empower themselves. Like a journey into deafhood. It's good. I think most of deaf people see deafhood as their own way to fullness. Fullness of justice, fullness of feelings and so on. Deaf people equals hearing people. But pride of individuals is not enough to empower deaf communities. It's not the only way to empower the deaf community, either. There's several ways.

Knowledge about audism, deafhood and it's community is very important and will take us to a higher level of self-consciousness, but it's not enough. We have to look outside our world. There's another world - the hearing one. There's the new area to work on for all deaf communities. We have to learn us to invite people to our community. Make people see sign language as a opportunity. Hearing people should see deaf people and its community as a opportunity. How to? Yea.. I think that one of them is very impactful. Introduce sign language classes in hearing schools. Hearing children should be able to attend sign language class. Other way will be a increased amount of deaf scholars. They have to research and publish about deaf people in other perspectives than linguistics and social. Researching reports has always been used to improve the life of human. Reports also been used as grounds in debates, arguments and so on. Without succeed deaf academics we will have harder to integrate ourselves to hearing people. Academic has been and will always stand up for the evolution. We have to let us to be a part of this. I'm not saying that theres no acitivity by deaf academics today, I just want to see more deaf scholars in other spheres than linguistics and deaf studies.

Nowadays all deaf people should have responsibilities to the next deaf generation. The next generation deaf. Some people should say there's no deaf generation because of the increased amount of cochlear children. Then we will never forget these children in this so called cochlear-generation, they all are deaf. Like us. They still need sign language. They still need the identity who deaf people have. I should say, they need deafhood. There's no "cochlear-hood". We all have responsibilty to show these children the road.

After empowering ourselves by understanding audism and deafhood, I rather to empower deaf community through integration.

Anders.se - Pilot Episode

Wow. The first episode was really amaziing! I really recommend you all to take a watch on Anders.se! Dramaski already aired first episode last monday, but the producers decides to give the audience who missed the first a chance. In other words - the first and second episodes will be available on www.dramaski.se monday 22 Oct 20.00 to wednesday Oct 24 00.00. Be aware that is in swedish time (GMT +1).

Anders.se already reached approximately 1000 viewers from several countries! Canada, USA, Finland, Norge, South Africa, Belgium and so on... So dont miss the episodes Monday 22 Oct!! Btw, the site isnt fully updated in english, but you all can leave messages on "klotterplanket".

www.dramaski.se

Anders.se - TV-series for deaf and sign language users

Two youth deafs were inspired by the annual Filmgala in Örebro and after winning in the categories best director, best film, best manusscript and best actor with their productions they decides to make something new.

The idea of anders.se was born and these two, Filip Wlostowski and Mindy Drapsa made the idea to reality. Anders.se is a sitcom about life, audiogram and a small web company. Seems to be really interesting! The trailer with english subtitle is available at www.dramaski.se. You have to enter english site to watch the trailer with subtitle.

For a long time many youth deafs have complained that there is no TV for youth deaf in Sweden. We just have approximately 1 hour Sign Language broadcast per week, it's not enough! Ok, there are 10 mins signing news every day, but it still isn't enough. By the 1 hour broadcast in Sign Language, there are just poor TV programs.

I think and hope that will be a pressure on SVT (Sveriges Television - the Swedish public service television company). A really sucking broadcaster, but I hope they will understand and give us deaf more broadcast in our own language. They dont subtitle all broadcasts, its discrimination against people who can't take part of public broadcasts!

By the way, don't forget to check out the trailer at www.dramaski.se!

Swedish Deaf Pokeplayer in the money at WSOP!

My friend Kristian Obbarius is in the money in WSOP Main event. Best of swedes with $704k in chips. He's professional poker player since a few years, this WSOP is his second one. He sat at ESPN feature table and had KK in his hand. Rain Khan before him, raises to 15k preflop with A6offsuited. Obbarius re-raises to 55k. Rain Khan re-raises to 160k again. Easy play for Obbarius - he went all-in. And then he was called by Khan. He flopped triples in kings and doubled up.

Thereafter Obbarius made fun of Khan. He gesticulated something to Khan - fishing and got a bite from Khan. The audience around the TV-table laughed loudly and Khan wasn't so pleased, I think.

Go go go, Obbe!

Sign Language Education

Got a thought about deafness and writing skill. Last day I talked to a student of sign language intepretation, she said that it was so surprisingly that deaf can't their own language so well.
In her study, she was struggling with mouth morphemes and needed help. She asked a couple of deafs about mouth morphemes, but there was no who knows what mouth morphemes is. Then according to writing skills among deaf people, many can't express through written language so well as they does with their own language - sign language. She said, why the hell the schools of deaf don't prioritize sign language education before other language lessons such as swedish and english. Sign language is a complex language with its own syntax and grammar which differs from spoken and written language. There is needs of increased knowledge of sign language and its grammar structure among deafs. Putting Written language in front of students' first language will not help, learning of other (second) language will be a lot better if you master your first one.

So... If students didn't have a good command of that language they were raised into, there is a risk that they'll never could master other languages so well.

Hello, my new blog!

Hey. What about this blog? Yes, I'll write down and collect thoughts of mine in this blog. It means I will write and publish things I feels to like express them out. One of points with this blog is also to improve my english writing. Since I begun to attend at Mid University, I'd increase my skill of reading and understanding of english a lot. But there are still too much swedish and no creative english writing skills in my head, so I'll use this blog as a way of improving my own writing skills.