Deaf culture

[castel]

I hope this isn't in the wrong place, but I am very curious. I am an American Sign Language student and hope to travel to Scotland one day. How does the Deaf community interact with the hearing community?

Do the Deaf use British Sign Language or has someone developed a Scottish version of it? What is required of interpreters?

[Scottish_Republican]

The deaf community does not interact enough with the hearing community really.

There is however a long history of signing etc in Scotland, and indeed Alexander Graham Bell's father pioneered methods for helping them.

British Sign Language is used, but there are indeed Scottish versions of it. I think for example, that Scots use slightly different signs for "deaf" and "hearing" than southern English.

[castel]

Thanks for responding! Where could I get more information about the Deaf in Scotland?

You could try the BDA (British Deaf Association) in Scotland.

http://www.britishdeafassociation.or...?page=Scotland

http://www.ssc.mhie.ac.uk/VPages/F2/V2861.htm

[Scottish_Republican]

This isn't much use to you but...

1) The number of "deaf" here has been reduced greatly by hearing aids, which turn the partially hearing into more integrated members of mainstream society. This is a good and a bad thing. Good because it gives them a broader life, and bad, because the deaf community has its own culture and language, and this gets impinged on...

2) A number of taster courses have been run in community centres round the country. I did one myself. These are fine for giving you a basic grounding, but to actually go further costs horrendous amounts of money, and is difficult to justify for many people, unless they have personal reasons to.

3) English, i.e. "British", tv runs a lot of signed programmes, but these are most in the wee hours of the morning and obviously to be videoed. Most programmes have subtitles which can be received on special sets... I don't know of any signed programmes produced in Scotland, but I do know that at least one of the well known presenters on English deaf tv is a Scotsman.

4) Certainly deaf schoolchildren do work experience, as do mainstream pupils in Scotland. The charity I work for regularly had a 16yr old girl from Donaldsons (which is the main school for most of Scotland in Edinburgh) in for one afternoon doing this. She had to communicate with a notepad, and my signing was not great. She had a partially hearing supervisor in occasionally to keep an eye on her. The poor girl was very nervous, and I'm afraid not all members of the public were very nice to her.

[castel]

OK - I'm really absorbed in Deaf Everything so can I wear my heart on my sleeve for just a few minutes?

Sounds similar to the States. We have MANY outreaches to the deaf but it depends on the population of Deaf in any city/area and the willingness of hearing people to reach out TO them. It's sad to me because I have such a heart for them. The Deaf don't think anything is wrong with them, which contributes to some of their pride issues but who's to say they are wrong? A person's experiences are subjective regardless of our senses because they belong to that person. Just because they can't hear the music doesn't mean they can't enjoy it's message - lots of Deaf actually DO "listen" to music! Unfortunately, many Deaf individuals who are engrossed in D culture feel that society owes them something and while our laws (ADA) are designed to protect their rights and interests, they can be used to make people arrogant and insensitive.

While hearing aids and cochlear implants help the person to become more involved in the hearing world, it isn't a quick fix - there is still the issue of speech and activities when an amplifier can't be worn (playgrounds, swimming, etc.)One of my friends has a child who is severely Hard of Hearing (HH) and the child is getting implanted next week. I'm not sure the CI is the way to go because it only helps the hearing loss while the person wears the transmitter. I think what's important is keeping the right perspective about what the CI can accomplish. Yes, it will allow one to become more accepted in his environment but the fact remains that that person is still and will always have a hearing loss. It doesn't fix something that's (in our minds) defective. I have encountered parents who want this for their children because they think it's a cure, and it is NOT. What do you think about the cochlear inplant?

Before I finish, I should say that I believe our world is not friendly to people who have differences. And many a deaf person through the years has been discriminated against/taken advantage of because they didn't know how to communicate with the general public. We should not expect them to meet our requirements all the time as if we have ALL the answers.

I am certainly not an expert, just someone who cares about the Deaf. Thanks for allowing me to vent and I hope I haven't offended anyone. I'm getting off my soap box now!

[castel]

Sorry Babz, I think it was kathyv I'm trying to find.