Deaf Studies
Auslan Studies

Auslan Studies

Why have Auslan Studies?
Hearing children learn English in more detail, so why shouldn't Deaf children learn their own language in more detail too? Auslan Studies is seen as an extended subject under the umbrella of Deaf Studies.

The Claremont Project first drafted the Auslan Studies curriculum in 1997 with the grade 6 Deaf students. Now it is being implemented with the grade 8 Deaf students on a weekly basis.

The Auslan Studies program contains several broad areas of study:

* Auslan parameters: handshape, orientation, movement, location and expression.
* History and origins of Auslan
* Story telling - role shift and classifiers - descriptive and proform
* Translating/ comparing English and Auslan
* Time markers
* The use of space in Auslan
* Types of signs - one handed, two handed and double handed
* Dialects of Auslan
* Numbers and distribution in Auslan
* Negation and affirmation
* Questions in Auslan

All Auslan studies classes are taught by a Deaf teacher of the Deaf pairing with a hearing teacher of the Deaf for comparisons with English where required.

Auslan studies has been a great success so far with students analysing their language and gaining a greater understanding of how Auslan and English are structured and their different syntaxes.

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