Sounds reasonable enough. I didn't sign the petition, simply because there isn't enough of a supply of BSL teachers to teach the people who do want to learn it already, let alone in schools. And it's often hard to practice.
Now if the petition had demanded all children be taught deaf and disability awareness in the National Curriculum, and CACDP level 2 part 1 be recognised as a GCSE, thus encouraging it to be taught especially where there's a deaf unit, I'd be all for it.
I see it as a chicken and egg thing. If there was more scope for teaching BSL, there would be more teachers. After all there weren't enougn Maths teachers at one point but that meant more drive to train and recruit them. It seems insane that it cannot at least be recognised alongside other languages and be taught as such.
That was a bit of a cop out answer, and completely didn't understand why BSL in schools would be a good thing.
Personally I believe ALL deaf/HOH children should have access to BSL throughout their education as it is a skill that many of us use and wish to extend further. Perhaps this would be a more reasonable objective in the short term. BSL is so much more useful than French or German in this country, and in the USA lots of people know bits of sign cos it is easy to do credits in it.
The government is being convinced by the mainstream teacher of the deaf lot who are mostly 'oralists' who claim successes where they perhaps ought not and fail to recognise where education for the deaf and HOH could be SO much better. They all find BSL hard, so don't realise its importance! They're still preaching that teaching sign damages spoken and written English ffs!
They're still preaching that teaching sign damages spoken and written English ffs!
Oh god they aren't are they? My only experience is from the other end, friends working in HI units where they want to teach sign and the parents won't have it - and half the kids should be in a deaf unit but the only way to convince the parents that the kid needs any help is to pretend that they can learn English.
Deaf and linguistical awareness is so needed. But I don't see any reason why BSL GCSE couldn't exist - it would just need an agreed syllabus, most easily harmonised with CACDP. Oh, 'agreed', that might be the problem - but if Bengali and Swahili and every other language can manage it...
Some people still are and some of them are far too influential in my opinion. I also see frustrated ToDs dealing with ignorant / scared parent too though. I think that having BSL GCSE would be a really good start and I am not sure why it has not happened yet, to be honest. My opinion is that there is not yet the political will to see BSL as a language, despite the fact that it has been recognised by the EU.
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"Deaf people don't count, kthnxbai."
They are really pissing me off
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Now if the petition had demanded all children be taught deaf and disability awareness in the National Curriculum, and CACDP level 2 part 1 be recognised as a GCSE, thus encouraging it to be taught especially where there's a deaf unit, I'd be all for it.
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Personally I believe ALL deaf/HOH children should have access to BSL throughout their education as it is a skill that many of us use and wish to extend further. Perhaps this would be a more reasonable objective in the short term. BSL is so much more useful than French or German in this country, and in the USA lots of people know bits of sign cos it is easy to do credits in it.
The government is being convinced by the mainstream teacher of the deaf lot who are mostly 'oralists' who claim successes where they perhaps ought not and fail to recognise where education for the deaf and HOH could be SO much better. They all find BSL hard, so don't realise its importance! They're still preaching that teaching sign damages spoken and written English ffs!
Reply
Oh god they aren't are they? My only experience is from the other end, friends working in HI units where they want to teach sign and the parents won't have it - and half the kids should be in a deaf unit but the only way to convince the parents that the kid needs any help is to pretend that they can learn English.
Deaf and linguistical awareness is so needed.
But I don't see any reason why BSL GCSE couldn't exist - it would just need an agreed syllabus, most easily harmonised with CACDP. Oh, 'agreed', that might be the problem - but if Bengali and Swahili and every other language can manage it...
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