George Veditz and modern day Jr. NAD representatives: The Preservation of ASL.
Questions to ask each other:
Why do you think ASL is a complicated topic in the field of deaf education?
When did you learn ASL?
Do you feel you understand ASL as a language?
Why is language a powerful thing to people? What does language do?
How would deaf education be like if ASL was never banned? What would this mean for deaf people in general?
As critical as ASL is to our lives—so is English—why is it complicated to have both languages? Why do you think people feel bilingual skills are difficult, when in fact, we know it’s not?
Think back in time—if you were a deaf person in 1880 and you used ASL as your language, but you were banned to do so in specific settings, how would have you responded? How would you feel?
What about ASL at TSD—what do you feel needs to be stressed with ASL as a language?
Do we value ASL as much as we value English? Why or why not?
RESOURCES