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• Languages | Auslan: Rationale and Aims

  Rationale

  The formal study of Auslan contributes to the overall intellectual and social enrichment of both first language and second language learners by providing:

  • opportunities for engagement with the Deaf community and insight into its rich cultural heritage
  • opportunities to develop intercultural...

  Overview material | Auslan

• VCASFC209

  Reflect on the experience of learning and using Auslan, considering how intercultural communication involves shared responsibility for making meaning

  Elaborations

  • reflecting on how learning Auslan provides a distinctive and additional means of understanding the world in which they live
  • reflecting on the relationship that exists between language, culture and issues of access, identity and audism, and considering issues of discrimination, inclusion and exclusion
  • keeping a journal of their experiences (humorous, satisfying or challenging) associated with learning and using Auslan in different contexts, noting changes in their responses and reflections over time, and comparing insights gained into their own languages and cultures
  • considering the layers of complexity and depth that characterise the Deaf community experience, for example in relation to implicit hierarchical structures such as deaf members of deaf families
  • sharing and comparing cultural and intercultural experiences and capabilities in different languages including Auslan, and exchanging views on benefits associated with using more than one language, such as a larger repertoire of communication skills and strategies, additional insights and perspectives and opportunities for new experiences
  • reflecting on the experience of communicating in a visual world and on challenges they have experienced in relying on visual cues
  • considering how intercultural communication is a two-way process which involves shared responsibility for meaning-making and ensuring understanding

  VCASFC209 | Languages | Auslan | Second Language Learner | F–10 Sequence | Levels 9 and 10 | Communicating | Reflecting

• VCASFC226

  Demonstrate understanding of the nature of identity in relation to themselves, the Deaf community and the wider hearing community

  Elaborations

  • using visual representations such as concept maps, posters or captioned slide presentations to identify groups that they each identify with, for example, friends, family, sporting, interest and community groups, discussing how these group associations contribute to their sense of identity
  • discussing how their upbringing and personal experience impact on assumptions or attitudes that they bring to interactions with people who have different backgrounds or experiences, considering concepts such as communication, personality, family and community
  • noticing and comparing their own and each other’s ways of communicating and interacting, identifying elements that reflect cultural differences or influences of other languages
  • viewing a series of Auslan identity stories, such as those found in the Griffith University Introduction to Deaf Studies Unit 1 set, comparing their experiences to those described by deaf children and adults in the footage
  • investigating the identity of deafblind people and their connection to the Deaf community by inviting deafblind guests into the classroom to share their personal journeys
  • exploring ideas about identity through journal writing, documenting challenges and rewards related to second language learning and identity change
  • analysing ways in which Deaf people design and adapt spaces in cultural ways (‘Deaf space’), for example, by eliminating visual obstacles to signed communication, using circles or semicircles for meeting and learning spaces, using open-plan areas, lighting and window placement to maximise visual access to information, for example, Gallaudet University’s deaf space design principles
  • surveying deaf people about their experiences and perspectives on the importance and significance of Deaf places that contribute to a shared sense of identity, for example, the Deaf Club, Deaf schools or sites of historic significance such as original Deaf Society/Mission buildings or other former meeting places
  • identifying and researching Deaf community identities associated with significant historical places, such as William Thomson establishing the first deaf school in WA

  VCASFC226 | Languages | Auslan | Second Language Learner | 7–10 Sequence | Levels 7 and 8 | Communicating | Identity

• VCASFU036

  Explore connections between identity and cultural values and beliefs and the expression of these connections in Auslan

  Elaborations

  • exploring culture as an essential part of human life, understanding that it is shared and passed on between generations and is closely connected to language and to identity
  • understanding that culture is more than the visible aspects of people’s lives; that it also includes invisible elements such as beliefs and values, how people think about themselves and others, how they relate to their social and physical environments, and how these understandings apply to themselves as users of Auslan and members of the Deaf community
  • recognising that in each culture there are general rules for what to say and do, when, where and with whom, and that these rules differ from culture to culture, for example, the Deaf culture places greater importance on eye contact than cultures that communicate through spoken languages
  • recognising that language reflects values and beliefs, such as in expressions of personal identity or in the recognition of others (sameness and difference), for example by identifying deaf family members as part of introductions, and by relaying cultural information about background and context and shared knowledge when interacting with others
  • appreciating the social and cultural nature of deaf humour in a visual language

  VCASFU036 | Languages | Auslan | First Language Learner | F–10 Sequence | Levels 3 and 4 | Understanding | Role of language and culture

• Auslan - First Language Learner - F–10 Sequence: Levels 7 and 8 description

  Students continue to expand their language use to additional domains beyond their personal experience and interests. They use a range of grammatical forms and language structures to convey more complex relationships between ideas and experiences, creating compound and complex sentences by using...

  Level description | Languages | Auslan | First Language Learner | F–10 Sequence

• VCASFU053

  Explore the current status and profile of Auslan and of the Deaf community in contemporary Australian society, considering issues such as language transmission, usage and documentation

  Elaborations

  • discussing the diversity of Auslan users in the Australian community, including people who are deaf, those who are hard of hearing and hearing people such as CODAs and interpreters
  • investigating the signed languages used by deaf and hard of hearing members of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities
  • exploring variation in Auslan fluency among classmates and members of the Deaf community, considering the relevance of factors such as where and when individual users learnt to sign and whether they are from a Deaf or hearing family
  • mapping sign language use around the world using data from Ethnologue, for example by identifying and labelling countries with correct naming of the sign language used, such as France = LSF: Langue des Signes Française; Germany = DGS: Deutsche Gebärdensprache
  • finding representations of signing deaf people in the media or in literary texts, and evaluating how they and the language are represented
  • investigating the profile and distribution of members of the Deaf community, for example across states of Australia or by age or gender, using data from censuses and other sources to summarise and represent information in graph/visual forms, and to suggest possible explanations of patterns or statistics
  • understanding the role and function of Auslan–English interpreters and Deaf interpreters and the access and opportunities they provide to language users
  • recognising that many languages are well-documented, strong, healthy and widely used by many people across generations while others are less documented and robust
  • recognising that some languages have no written form and have historically been passed on face to face/orally, which means that they are less well recorded or documented
  • recognising language documentation as an important means of recording, maintaining, transmitting and revitalising a language
  • understanding the nature of transmission of Auslan, for example, that in most cases Auslan is not passed on from parent to child but from peers, or is learnt by children from adults outside the family, and that some deaf people learn Auslan later in early adulthood
  • describing how Auslan has been transmitted across generations and how it has been recorded, investigating reasons for the ‘oral’ tradition language transmission
  • using the UNESCO atlas to map the world’s minority languages and those that are in critical endangerment and to document the vitality of signed languages

  VCASFU053 | Languages | Auslan | First Language Learner | F–10 Sequence | Levels 5 and 6 | Understanding | Language awareness

• VCASFC019

  Communicate with each other and with teachers about aspects of their personal worlds, daily routines, preferences and pastimes

  Elaborations

  • sharing feelings about important experiences or events, for example:
    PRO1 EXCITED HOLIDAY SOON
    I am excited about the holidays.
    POSS1 FRIEND CHANGE OTHER SCHOOL PRO1 SAD
    I was sad when my friend moved away.
    
  • discussing preferences in relation to school or community activities, using comparatives and superlatives
    PRO1 LIKE MATH, SCIENCE BUT POSS1 FAVOURITE ART
    I like maths and science, but my favourite subject is art.
    
  • comparing routines or activities, using signs for time, sequence and location, such as:
    WHAT TIME PRO2 GO-TO-BED?
    What time do you go to bed?
    EVERY MONDAY POSS1 CLASS LIST-BUOY-1 READING LIST-BUOY2 MATHS LIST-BUOY-3 SWIMMING. POSS2 CLASS G:WELL?
    Every Monday my class has reading, then maths, then swimming. What about your class?
    
  • telling each other about daily routines or habits showing aspectual marking on verbs to indicate frequency, such as brushing teeth for a long time
  • interacting with younger children or with people who are just beginning to learn to sign, adapting language to suit the situation
  • describing actions and activities using NMFs to show manner, for example, PRO1 WORK versus PRO1 WORK-_hard
  • participating in online exchanges such as vlogs to compare daily routines or interests with other deaf children or families
  • using persuasive language in social interactions with each other, for example:
    PLEASE POPCORN GIVE-_me++ BEG?
    Please can I have some of your popcorn?

  VCASFC019 | Languages | Auslan | First Language Learner | F–10 Sequence | Levels 3 and 4 | Communicating | Socialising

• Auslan - First Language Learner - 7–10 Sequence: Levels 9 and 10 achievement standards

  By the end of Level 10, students use Auslan to share information, experiences, interests, thoughts and feelings in relation to their personal and immediate worlds. They describe the appearance of people, objects and places using SASS depicting signs and spatial location, for example, HAVE DS:...

  Level description | Languages | Auslan | First Language Learner | 7–10 Sequence | Levels 9 and 10

• VCASFU179

  Explore the current status and profile of Auslan and of the Deaf community in contemporary Australian society, considering issues such as language transmission, usage and documentation

  Elaborations

  • describing the visibility and use of Auslan in the wider community, for example in television programs, on the news, at community events, sporting fixtures and in emergency announcements
  • discussing the diversity of Auslan users in the Australian community, including people who are deaf, those who are hard of hearing and hearing people such as CODAs and interpreters
  • investigating the signed languages used by deaf and hard of hearing members of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities
  • exploring variation in Auslan fluency among classmates and members of the Deaf community, considering the relevance of factors such as where and when individual users learnt to sign and whether they are from a Deaf or hearing family
  • mapping sign language use around the world using data from Ethnologue, for example by identifying and labelling countries with correct naming of the sign language used, such as France = LSF: Langue des Signes Française; Germany = DGS: Deutsche Gebärdensprache
  • finding representations of signing deaf people in the media or in literary texts, and evaluating how they and the language are represented
  • investigating the profile and distribution of members of the Deaf community, for example across states of Australia or by age or gender, using data from censuses and other sources to summarise and represent information in graph/visual forms, and to suggest possible explanations of patterns or statistics
  • understanding the role and function of Auslan–English interpreters and Deaf interpreters and the access and opportunities they provide to language users
  • recognising that many languages are well-documented, strong, healthy and widely used by many people across generations while others are less well-documented and robust
  • recognising that some languages have no written form and have historically been passed on face to face/orally, which means that they are less well recorded or documented
  • recognising language documentation as an important means of recording, maintaining, transmitting and revitalising a language
  • understanding the nature of transmission of Auslan, for example, that in most cases Auslan is not passed on from parent to child but from peers, or is learnt by children from adults outside the family, and that some Deaf people learn Auslan later in early adulthood
  • describing how Auslan has been transmitted across generations and how it has been recorded, investigating reasons for the ‘oral’ tradition language transmission
  • using the UNESCO atlas to map the world’s minority languages and those that are in critical endangerment and to document the vitality of signed languages
  • exploring how different technologies are used by deaf people to support social networks and strengthen their community and language
  • explaining the significance of stories linked to Deaf social history and the responsibility of the Deaf community to convey shared experiences that relate to Deaf history and significant sites, for example by sharing stories about school days in the past
  • identifying examples of deaf people who have been recognised for different reasons in wider Australian society, for example, Alastair McEwin or Drisana Levitzke-Gray, and discussing how such recognition contributes to broader awareness of Auslan in Australia

  VCASFU179 | Languages | Auslan | Second Language Learner | F–10 Sequence | Levels 5 and 6 | Understanding | Language awareness

• VCASFC078

  Analyse different types of imaginative, creative and performative texts, considering how different techniques and modalities are employed to communicate with different audiences

  Elaborations

  • analysing examples of signed performance poetry, identifying patterns and conventions such as repetition of handshapes and movement paths of signs to create rhyme and to convey meaning
  • interpreting visual representations of Deaf experience, including the use of metaphors, perspectives, colours and textures in visual art forms such as sculpture, painting, photography, printmaking or ceramics
  • responding to forms of Deaf art that challenge perceptions and stimulate discussion, such as the work of Christine Sun Kim or members of the Australian Theatre of the Deaf or Deafinitely
  • comparing responses to imaginative texts that present particular values or points of view, for example, Deaf slam poetry
  • reflecting on the multilayered dimension of signed narrative, identifying how dynamic handshapes, facial expressions and body movements provide simultaneous narrative, commentary and emotional expression
  • comparing different recordings of signed storytelling, for example of young children making up stories or older people telling traditional tales, noticing differences in their language
  • comparing their interpretations of/responses to performances by deaf comedians, storytellers or poets
  • viewing and reviewing media texts that use aesthetic, artistic or realistic techniques to interpret and communicate dimensions of the Deaf experience, for example the documentary Deaf Jam (2011)
  • exploring the use of technology in Deaf art, film or performance, for example to help build mood or emotional expression
  • identifying relationships between elements such as imagery or signed sequences in texts such as ballads, free verse or narratives, for example by working with Auslan translations of Shakespearean texts
  • responding to signed poems that use extended metaphor to communicate values and ideas or to express emotional experience, for example, ‘Butterfly Hands’ by Walter Kadiki
  • comparing the visual nature of signed narratives with oral traditions of Indigenous cultures
  • analysing responses of hearing audiences to deaf performances, for example by evaluating comments made by judges on reality/talent television shows
  • discussing the complexity of live theatre performance interpretation and the use of deaf interpreters and consultants
  • creating highly complex narratives combining and switching between ways of reference, for example, CA, DS, lexical signs and frames of spatial reference

  VCASFC078 | Languages | Auslan | First Language Learner | F–10 Sequence | Levels 9 and 10 | Communicating | Creating

• Auslan - Second Language Learner - F–10 Sequence: Levels 5 and 6 achievement standards

  By the end of Level 6, students discuss aspects of their daily lives, social activities and school experience and respond to each other’s comments. They describe relationships and characteristics of people and objects and express feelings and preferences, for example, POSS1 FRIEND CHANGE...

  Level description | Languages | Auslan | Second Language Learner | F–10 Sequence | Levels 5 and 6

• VCASFC100

  Explore the concepts of identity, social groupings, relationships, community and place and space, and deaf people’s visual ways of being and negotiating these networks

  Elaborations

  • identifying themselves as members of different groups and describing their relationships with deaf, hard of hearing and hearing students, family members, the larger Deaf community and wider ‘hearing’ world
  • identifying and describing physical markers of identity among deaf people, such as the use of sign language and/or hearing devices such as hearing aids, cochlear implants and FM systems
  • creating a poster depicting their own family and labelling immediate and extended family members as deaf/hearing
  • identifying and discussing family names, given name/s and name signs for themselves and for others
  • exchanging views on how their individual biographies, including family origins, traditions, beliefs, communicative practices, interests and experiences, shape their sense of identity and impact on their ways of communicating
  • building an understanding of the concept of Deafhood and how each individual’s journey of identity development contributes to social relationships and to the formation of community, for example, by creating an individual identity map or a hand map
  • discussing visual ways of being, including interacting, transmitting and receiving information and behaving according to Deaf cultural values, and how these influence group learning and information sharing among Deaf people
  • investigating Deaf cultures around the world and how they shape visual ways of being, for example by considering how Deaf people from different countries and ethnic groups express shared group identity through practices such as gathering formally as a national or international community via opportunities such as Deaf film festivals; performing arts events, for example, Deaf Way; theatrical events; art exhibitions; or sporting events such as ADG, Deaflympics
  • responding to deaf people from different groups and backgrounds who visit and present about their education, families, social networks and sense of community/identity, for example by discussing similarities and differences between visitors’ reported experiences and their own lives
  • identifying the importance of place and space in the Deaf community, exploring why some places and spaces make deaf people feel comfortable or promote a sense of belonging, for example by identifying factors that make a classroom ‘Deaf friendly’, such as U-shape seating, minimisation of window glare/reflection, good lighting and acoustics, flashing lights, suitable interpreter location
  • identifying examples of deaf people’s visual orientation towards the world (‘people of the eye’), such as waving in space or using flashing lights to gain attention, visual applause
  • identifying their own stories, history, roles, responsibilities and links to the Deaf community and considering how these relate to their sense of identity
  • recognising that signed language is a birthright which establishes their identity with respect to the Deaf community and its traditions
  • viewing and creating accounts of their own and each other’s experience and roles in the Deaf community and identifying examples of the different ways of being deaf that they describe
  • discussing behaviour associated with cultural practices and traditions, for example, by discussing the concept of reciprocity as a manifestation of how community members share responsibility for each other’s wellbeing

  VCASFC100 | Languages | Auslan | First Language Learner | 7–10 Sequence | Levels 7 and 8 | Communicating | Identity

• VCASFC061

  Create imaginative and expressive texts that draw from their experience as Auslan users and members of the Deaf community and which support the experience of younger learners

  Elaborations

  • composing and performing soliloquies that capture elements of the Deaf experience in a hearing world
  • creating resources to support younger learners of Auslan, such as signed versions of games such as ‘Guess Who?’, riddles, treasure hunts or amusing tales
  • creating imaginative texts that present abstract ideas, such as hope, inclusion, friendship, in creative or amusing ways
  • creating an Auslan version of a popular song, using elements of all parameters to convey key messages and nuance emotional expression
  • creating a piece of art, such as a drawing, painting or photo collage, that reflects their experience of living in and moving between the Deaf and hearing worlds
  • engaging with the work of Deaf theatre groups such as the Australian Theatre of the Deaf, using elements of performances as models for their own experimentation with signed theatre
  • creating a performance for a school or Deaf festival based on the lives of celebrated or historical members of the Deaf community
  • presenting a short story based on their own experience of being a deaf student in a hearing school community, incorporating key elements of narrative structure, such as character introduction, problem/conflict, resolution
  • re-creating a theatre set from a two-dimensional image using signed space

  VCASFC061 | Languages | Auslan | First Language Learner | F–10 Sequence | Levels 7 and 8 | Communicating | Creating

• Auslan - First Language Learner - F–10 Sequence: Levels 7 and 8 achievement standards

  By the end of Level 8, students interact to share ideas and interests and to offer opinions, using compound and complex sentences, for example by using lexical conjunctions as well as non-manual features (NMFs). They participate in discussions and debates, acknowledging others’ opinions...

  Level description | Languages | Auslan | First Language Learner | F–10 Sequence | Levels 7 and 8

• Auslan - First Language Learner - 7–10 Sequence: Levels 7 and 8 achievement standards

  By the end of Level 8, students interact with the teaching team, class visitors and each other to share information about themselves, their families, friends, routines, pastimes and experiences. They refer to family members and classmates using fingerspelling or sign names as appropriate, and...

  Level description | Languages | Auslan | First Language Learner | 7–10 Sequence | Levels 7 and 8

• Auslan - Second Language Learner - F–10 Sequence: Levels 5 and 6 description

  Students are expanding their knowledge of vocabulary and sentence construction. With support, they use constructed action to show participants in a narrative, modify indicating verbs for non-present referents with increasing accuracy across a text, and use more complex entity depicting signs....

  Level description | Languages | Auslan | Second Language Learner | F–10 Sequence

• Auslan - Second Language Learner - 7–10 Sequence: Levels 9 and 10 achievement standards

  By the end of Level 10, students interact with peers, teachers and others using Auslan to communicate about personal interests and broader issues relating to the Deaf community. They participate in class discussions, explaining and clarifying positions, asking follow-up questions, using non-manual...

  Level description | Languages | Auslan | Second Language Learner | 7–10 Sequence | Levels 9 and 10

• VCASFU121

  Understand that signs can include different information, including a gestural overlay, and identify how signers establish spatial locations, types of depicting signs and ways of showing constructed action

  Elaborations

  • noticing that meaning is created in Auslan from fully-lexical signs, partly-lexical signs and non-lexical signing and gesture
  • understanding that fully-lexical signs are in the dictionary and have a standard handshape, movement and location, and partly-lexical signs can be changed to show information such as location or who is involved in indicating verbs
  • noticing that single-digit numbers can be separate lexical items or merged into other signs (numeral incorporation) such as those for ages, for example, 5-YEARS-OLD or adverbs of time, for example, 3-WEEKS-AGO or pronouns, for example, WE3, WE4
  • identifying where and how a signer has established a location in space (through pointing, modifying the movement of a verb, or locating a non-body-anchored noun sign)
  • recognising that signers must make explicit which referent is associated with a location
  • recognising that signers can set up referents in the signing space close to them (viewer space), for example, using a bC handshape (use of non-dominant hand) to indicate putting a glass on a table or distant (diagrammatic) for example, using 5claw in two locations to represent two houses
  • identifying independently instances of DSs and their type
  • learning that the function of CA is to represent the words, thoughts or actions of a protagonist in a text, either themselves or another
  • knowing that in CA a signer can shift into the role of another, or themselves at a different time, through eye gaze change, body shift, head orientation change, and matching facial expressions

  VCASFU121 | Languages | Auslan | First Language Learner | 7–10 Sequence | Levels 9 and 10 | Understanding | Systems of language

• VCASFU247

  Understand that signs can include different information including a gestural overlay, and identify how signers establish spatial locations, types of depicting signs and ways of showing constructed action

  Elaborations

  • recognising that Auslan has fully-lexical signs that are in the dictionary and have a standard handshape, movement and location, and partly-lexical signs that cannot be listed in a dictionary in all forms as gesture changes the form each time they are signed
  • noticing that meaning is created in Auslan from fully-lexical signs, partly-lexical signs, non-lexical signing and gesture and comparing with the range of ways English speakers create meaning, including spoken words, modifying intonation, and gesture
  • noticing that fully- and partly-lexical signs can include grammatical information not included in a ‘citation’ form, for example, the sign TELL-_me is not listed separately to TELL (towards neutral space) and GO-TO includes GO-TO-_often
  • noticing that single-digit numbers can be separate lexical items or merged into other signs (numeral incorporation) such as those for ages (for example, 5-YEARS-OLD) or adverbs of time (for example, 3-WEEKS-AGO) or pronouns (WE3, WE4)
  • identifying where and how a signer has established a location in space, for example through the use of points, non-body-anchored signs or fingerspelled words
  • recognising that signers must make explicit which referent is associated with a location, but do not need to continue to make this explicit throughout a text
  • recognising that signers can set up referents in the signing space close to them (viewer space, for example, using a bC handshape (use of non-dominant hand) to indicate putting a glass on a table) or distant (diagrammatic, for example, using 5claw in two locations to represent two houses)
  • recognising that in viewer space, signers can use locations for present referents, non-present referents, or abstract referents that do not exist in space
  • identifying instances of DSs and their type independently
  • comparing English adjectives with SASS DSs
  • learning that the function of CA is to represent the words, thoughts or actions of a protagonist in a text, either themselves or another
  • knowing that in CA a signer can shift into the role of another, or themselves at a different time, through eye gaze change, body shift, head orientation change, and matching facial expressions

  VCASFU247 | Languages | Auslan | Second Language Learner | 7–10 Sequence | Levels 9 and 10 | Understanding | Systems of language

• VCASFU031

  Observe that signers can include different information, including gestural overlays, within a single sign, and identify examples of signers using space grammatically through points, depicting signs and constructed action

  Elaborations

  • recognising that Auslan has fully-lexical signs that are in the dictionary and have a standard handshape, movement and location, and partly-lexical signs that cannot be listed in a dictionary in all forms as they change their form each time they are signed, such as DSs
  • noticing that fully- and partly-lexical signs can include grammatical information not included in a ‘citation’ form, for example, the sign TELL -_me is not listed separately to TELL (towards neutral space) and GO-TO includes GO-TO -_often
  • discussing the functions of different pointing signs, such as pronouns, determiners and locatives
  • understanding that some verb forms in Auslan indicate who is involved in a verb by changing the direction of the movement or orientation of the handshape
  • noticing the relationship between the location of referents and the direction of some indicating verbs
  • recognising who is the actor and undergoer of the verb in a clause
  • identifying with support examples of DSs and becoming familiar with the terms entity, handling and SASS DSs
  • comparing English adjectives with SASS DSs
  • knowing that signers can reconstruct/act out their own or another’s talk and/or actions and that this is called CA

  VCASFU031 | Languages | Auslan | First Language Learner | F–10 Sequence | Levels 3 and 4 | Understanding | Systems of language