New Zealand Sign Language L6: Context elaborations
Students are expected to communicate information, ideas, and opinions, and express and respond to personal ideas and opinions in areas of most immediate relevance. The content and language of the communication is targeted beyond the immediate context to include the expression of opinions. Students are expected to understand and produce a variety of text types.
Example 1: Deaf Club
Deaf Club film
Context and text type
Aroha is a hearing person, conversing with Luca, a Deaf person. The conversation is about Aroha’s first time at Deaf club. They discuss Aroha’s experiences and Luca offers to go with her next time.
Text type
Informal signed conversation. Interactive.
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Examples showing how the student is:
Communicating information, ideas, and opinions beyond the immediate context
Aroha uses a yes/no question to gather ideas:
- Nod GREAT IX-me LOVE GO IX-loc AGAIN. INTERESTING SEE DEAF WORLD.
Luca asks a question to initiate the discussion:
- FINE++ PROBLEM
Luca gives information about Deaf club and Deaf culture:
- IX-you MEAN LIKE WAVE OR
In response to Aroha’s question, Luca says that she will go to the Deaf club with her:
- OH IX-you ONLY
HAVE+++ MAYBE NEXT TIME WE-two GO-TO IX-loc INTRODUCE MEET++ DEAF PEOPLE
NZSL features such as negation, affirmation, pronouns and locatives (through pointing), facial expression and grammar, correct handshapes, appropriate signing space, body language, non-manual signs and different forms of questioning have a bearing on the overall effectiveness of the communication and must be taken into consideration.
OH IX-you ONLY
HAVE+++ MAYBE NEXT TIME WE-two GO-TO IX-loc INTRODUCE MEET++ DEAF PEOPLE
Aroha is constructing her understanding of Deaf culture as they converse:
IX-me LEARN HOW DEAF ATTENTION
Expressing and responding to personal ideas and opinions
Aroha expresses her enjoyment at having had a new experience, which is reinforced by facial expression to show emotion:
- YES EVERY-ONE NICE FRIENDLY IX-they PATIENT WHEN IX-me
IX-them
Aroha describes a new experience using adjectives:
- AWESOME EXPERIENCE. AMAZING.
Luca responds to Aroha by reiterating her personal viewpoint:
- SIGN LANGUAGE VISUAL HANDS CHATTING-away
- YES KNOW++ POSS-tend DEAF SIGN
Communicating appropriately in different situations
Aroha uses a formulaic expression to end the conversation:
YES IX-me LOOK-FORWARD SEE-you NEXT WEEK
Questions are used to maintain the flow of the conversation:
- FINE++ PROBLEM
Aroha uses clear facial expression to match her views:
LAST SATURDAY NIGHT IX-me FIRST TIME WENT IX-loc DEAF CLUB. IX-me SURPRISE
Understanding how language is organised for different purposes
The text illustrates the use of short words, phrases and simple sentence patterns which are a feature of conversational exchanges:
Luca shows respect for Aroha’s lack of cultural knowledge:
- OH IX-you ONLY
HAVE+++ MAYBE NEXT TIME WE-two GO-TO IX-loc INTRODUCE MEET++ DEAF PEOPLE
Luca uses a formulaic greeting:
Aroha gives a precise statement about her new learning at the Deaf club:
- IX-me LEARN HOW DEAF ATTENTION
Both signers use non-manual signals to show meaning/opinion. For example to modify a level of emotion like surprise:
- LAST SATURDAY NIGHT IX-me FIRST TIME WENT IX-loc DEAF CLUB. IX-me SURPRISE
Transliterations based on English forms sometimes enter a conversation in NZSL. As the flow of communication is not interrupted, Aroha, a learner of NZSL, clearly understands what Luca says.
-
in NZSL compared with HOW ARE YOU, which is based on spoken English. Luca uses formulaic colloquial expressions that are typically used in informal conversations and are specific to NZSL:
- OH IX-you ONLY
HAVE+++
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Opportunities for developing intercultural communicative competence
Students could research and compare the Deaf community with their own or another culture. They could make connections with comparable aspects of other languages and cultures known to them. What similarities and differences can they identify between their own culture and that of Deaf people? What different technologies are used by Deaf people?
Students could explore their own experiences of being in an unfamiliar cultural setting: visiting a marae or a foreign country. How did they find out expected behaviours? What made behaving appropriately easy or difficult? How might students use the knowledge they have gained to communicate respectfully within the Deaf community?
Students could explore examples of NZSL language features in conversational texts, especially greetings and how conversations are sustained and ended. Students could compare these findings to other known languages.
Last updated June 17, 2020
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