Auslan: Second Language Learner 7–10 Sequence / Levels 7 and 8 / Understanding / Language variation and change
Content description
Explore different dimensions of variation in the structure, development and use of Auslan, including how it has been influenced by English and other signed languages
Elaborations
exploring similarities and differences in the two main Auslan dialects, the northern dialect, used in New South Wales, Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory, and the southern dialect, used in Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory, for example through building webcam relationships with other schools or by identifying and collecting signs that differ in the two forms
researching how BSL from the 1800s evolved into Auslan, NZSL and modern BSL, for example by finding and classifying examples from Auslan, NZSL and BSL signbanks
understanding that while the structure of individual signs can change over time in regular ways, there is little information about this process in signed languages due to lack of historical records of signing
explaining the influence of other signed languages such as BSL, ISL and ASL on Auslan over different periods of time and in different domains of language use, and discussing why this is the case
noticing different ways that English words are borrowed into Auslan, for example, the use of fully fingerspelled words, such as D-U-E, N-O-U-N, the fingerspelling of the first letter of corresponding English words, for example TOILET, FATHER, or abbreviations of English words, for example, state names: S-A, N-S-W, V-I-C, T-A-S, and organisation names: N-A-B-S, W-A-A-D, N-S-W-A-D, D-C-S-S-A, and lexicalised fingerspelling, such as HOW, BUT, ABOUT, FOR
recognising that Auslan includes loan signs from Signed English, such as TOY or DAD, and understanding why some older deaf people are uncomfortable with these changes
looking at style shifts in domains where English is in closer contact with Auslan, such as the use of more English-like structures in formal and educational settings
considering adaptations to Auslan use when communicating in different physical environments, such as in video chats, across a large yard, or when one or both hands are occupied, for example, variations in vocabulary, size of signing space, clarity of signs, use of fingerspelling and NMFs
noticing the variation in ‘handedness’ between signers in relation to both signs and to fingerspelling: right handers using their right hand as their dominant (main) hand; left handers doing the opposite
