Let’s talk about bilingualism, and let’s talk about ignorance, and let’s talk about inclusion both on and off the Brandeis campus. Our community would benefit from the curricular addition of American Sign Language—and our student body wants it. After demonstrated student interest, through polling and through club-sponsored course attendance, efforts are being made to bring ASL to our campus as a for-credit, language-requirement-satisfying course option. 

Through dialogue with faculty who are familiar with either ASL or the process of amending the school’s curriculum, conversation with students and research on other universities who have successfully brought the language to their communities this initiative is moving steadily toward realization. 

The social movement in the U.S. toward acknowledging the Deaf community (with a capital-D to indicate cultural aspects and not exclusively physical attributes) is a recent but powerful one. Between 1995 and 2009, student enrollment at the college level in ASL jumped from a mere 4,304 to over 90,000, according to the New York Times—and the trend has continued. According to the Modern Language Association, ASL is now the fourth most studied modern and foreign language at colleges and universities in the United States, claiming a higher percentage of enrollment than the top three language offerings—Spanish, French and German—at institutions teaching ASL. Although the cause is undeniably complex, the augmented interest and involvement of the hearing community can likely be attributed to both a better and a wider representation of the Deaf community in casual and entertainment forums (in large part due to popular television shows like Switched at Birth and internet video resources—both effectively manufacturing easier access, and increased feelings of relatability with the Deaf community); and, preceding this, the acceptance of ASL as a real, independent and legitimate language in its own right. 

This has been a tremendous and crucial leap—sign languages are complex and distinct not only among countries (ASL is derived from the first formalized and recorded sign language, originating in France), but also regionally.

Just as you recognize different accents and speech patterns, so do ASL speakers. Signers from the northern United States sign more quickly than those from the South; some signs are unique to the East Coast and would not be used on the West Coast. And furthermore, in the relatively recent historical move toward recognition of the legitimacy of signed languages, the Deaf community (with a capital-D to indicate cultural aspects and not exclusively physical attributes) has become more visible, slowly less stigmatized and more accepted.

ASL is a rich, unique, fully visual and highly expressive language. What is more, speakers of ASL are sometimes estimated at a half a million in the United States, many of whom are deaf (referring to the medical phenomenon), hard of hearing (experiencing partial hearing loss) or Deaf (belonging culturally to the Deaf community, often deaf or hard of hearing, but not always). And yet, they are circumstantially rejected or misunderstood by a majority of the population, due in large part to underexposure, misunderstanding and consequential disinterest. To be clear, the Deaf community is a proud and vibrant one. Students should take advantage of the extensive opportunities to interact with, or just experience, ASL in Boston, where a wide range of events—spanning from poetry slams, to theater,  to hangouts and beyond occur regularly. 

Already, there is a unique opportunity to be immersed in a new culture, with a new language, just 20 minutes away—which is really just spectacular and exceptional. But students should also have access to ASL and Deaf education on-campus. Brandeis’ foreign language requirement webpage elucidates that “[c]ommunicating in another language challenges unexamined habits of mind, enriches the imagination and grants access to the world through sources in languages other than English.” This argument applies abundantly to the case for teaching ASL on the Brandeis campus as a for-credit course. 

Brandeis’ American Sign Language Club, which is spearheading the initiative to ensure that ASL is recognized by our University, is now in its third year, but not its first incarnation. Past manifestations of the club have also led similar initiatives and found student interest but have been unable to work through administrative logistics. The process of bringing a new language class to the University involves conundrums such as the need to secure student commitment to prospective classes without being able to promise the availability of said classes (which can only be promised with concrete student commitment). The catalyzers of the enterprise are also left to find and secure prospective professors and ascertain a willing departmental host. Simply put, the process is filled with many question marks and many contingent and volatile variables. This said, the current ASL club has made historic progress. Student enthusiasm has manifested itself through club attendance and through student willingness to devote an hour and a half weekly on formal but unrecognized coursework to learning the language simply for the sake of learning. In past semesters, students have devoted large portions of their Sundays to attending ASL courses at Harvard University, as well as paying the subsidized fee for said classes. The hope is that Brandeis will agree to begin the first semester with the level 10 ASL course, the second with level 20, and the following with both 10 and 30 levels so that students can complete the requisite three semesters of the language requirement. Following the recent success of the Korean language addition, there is optimism regarding ASL’s pending acceptance into the curriculum. However, ASL faces barriers, such as less recognition and a less organic support foundation, given that many mistakenly fail to recognize that the language is associated with a distinct culture and nation.

In harmony with Brandeis’ reputation as a school that concerns itself with social justice and inclusion and as a school that boasts good and responsive rapport with its student body, Brandeis would do well to introduce ASL classes to the curriculum. Such an action would demonstrate an interest in adding new perspectives and greater diversity to our community. Furthermore, said addition would be illustrative of Brandeis’ commitment to progress, acceptance and rejection of antiquated ignorance regarding the marginalized and largely unconsidered. 

And if somehow the ethical and principled argument isn’t enough, consider this: ASL is a great alternative to more traditional languages such as Spanish and French because one is taught and learns visually as opposed to aurally. For students who prefer visual learning, or who have found voiced accents challenging, ASL will provide a new approach. This is certainly not to say that ASL is an easy language to learn—it is a full language with grammar and vocabulary just like any other, with the additional challenge of learning to incorporate facial expression, body posture and movement in space grammatically. Additionally, the ability to list proficiency in ASL along with any major—particularly Psychology or Linguistics—is strategically relevant. For students interested in pursuing language acquisition, a career in speech pathology, when a client may suffer great difficulty using their voices, with pronunciation or with other methods of expression, or even interpretation, the linguistic introduction during one’s undergraduate career can only be beneficial. 

Even external to these specific examples, regardless of your profession, you may find yourself working with Deaf individuals—bilingualism is always relevant. 

In adopting ASL as a for-credit, language-requirement-fulfilling course, Brandeis would be representing not only the student body, but also the principles by which it purports to abide. 

—Carmen Altes ’16 is the former publicity coordinator for Brandeis’ American Sign Language Club.