Author: unknown source: unknown accession date: May 2004-12

Song Ling 2004-05- 10 China Special Needs Online spe-edu 12

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Abstract: After the implementation of "bilingual teaching for deaf students" in China, it has caused a new round of heated debates in the field of special education. Mr. Mei, a deaf teacher in Beijing No.3 School for the Deaf, has written many papers advocating sign language teaching from the perspective of a deaf person based on his years of teaching experience. Based on the analysis of Mr. Mei's "Reflections on Language Teaching Methods for Deaf People in China", this paper expounds the author's understanding of the definition of deaf people and sign language and oral language teaching, and puts forward some preliminary ideas and suggestions on the teaching procedures of bilingual teaching, in an effort to break through the limitations of pure theoretical debate and build a more specific operational process of bilingual teaching. spe-edu 12

Keywords: spe-edu 12, sign language bilingual teaching for deaf people

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"Bilingual teaching for deaf students" is a new way of deaf education that has gradually emerged in some developed countries in Europe and America, such as Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Britain, the United States and Canada since 1980s. It is developed on the basis of denying the evaluation of "oral teaching method" implemented in the past. Advocates of bilingual teaching believe that "deaf schools should educate deaf people to skillfully use deaf sign language and mainstream social language, so that they can become' balanced bilinguals', so that they can live freely in mainstream society and use deaf language among deaf people." ① After the concept of bilingual teaching was introduced into China, it had a great influence on the traditional teaching in schools for the deaf in China. While understanding bilingual teaching, people began to reflect on the language teaching policy of "giving priority to oral teaching" in deaf schools for more than 50 years, and began to think deeply about the significance of sign language to deaf students and deaf schools. Everyone has drawn different conclusions from different positions, which can be said that a hundred schools of thought contend and each has its own merits. Among them, Mr. Mei, a deaf teacher in Beijing No.3 School for the Deaf, raised the banner of sign language teaching from the perspective of the deaf. His article Reflections on Language Teaching Methods for the Deaf in China, written in 1999, embodies his understanding of the development direction of language teaching in schools for the deaf. Based on this article, combined with my own understanding and experience, this paper talks about my own views on whether oral teaching, sign language teaching and bilingual teaching should be implemented in deaf schools. spe-edu 12

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I. Analysis of Mei's Thoughts on Chinese Teaching Method for Deaf People in China spe-edu 12

1, the definition of deaf-mute. spe-edu 12

It is an inevitable trend of the development of modern special education to treat the deaf differently. But I don't agree with teacher Mei's classification: judging by what you can't hear or say. "Say an ugly word" contains many meanings, such as dysarthria, stuttering, poor pitch control, hoarseness, etc ... all of which can be judged as "say a bad word" in linguistics. Can it be said that people with these characteristics are "dumb"? Moreover, Teacher Mei emphasized that most deaf people have "no oral awareness", so they can't hear or speak well. But as far as I know, plus my experience in Beijing No.1 School for the Deaf, I found that the fact is not what he said. A ninth-grade deaf student has a hearing loss of more than 100dB. According to the Classification Standard of Hearing Disability in China, he is already in the first-degree hearing loss (hearing loss > 965, 438+0 dB is the first-degree hearing loss, which is the most serious first-degree hearing loss). However, with the help of hearing AIDS, he can not only understand the language through listening, but also talk with people in spoken language, although his reaction is very slow. A classmate is tutoring a deaf-mute child. The little girl's hearing loss exceeds 1 10 decibel. With the help of hearing AIDS, she can perceive and speak (there are vague questions, but it does not affect basic oral communication), and she can learn by reading words in ordinary junior high schools. I believe there are many such examples in real life, and only a few people in the deaf group really have no sense of language. Moreover, the definition of "speaking ill" itself is insufficient, and it can only be judged subjectively. Its value in teaching is doubted and further scientific research is needed. spe-edu 12

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2. About "returning to the mainstream". spe-edu 12

Because deaf students mainly live in a healthy society, food, clothing, housing and transportation all come from the big society, it is considered that deaf students "do not have the situation of being divorced from the mainstream society" and there is no need to talk about "return". I don't agree with this statement. In my opinion, "returning to the mainstream" is not a change in material form, not from a material point of view, but a change in his spiritual and ideological level as a person with social attributes: from skewness to normality. Material determines consciousness and affects a person's spiritual and cognitive development, but it does not mean that "what kind of material conditions will certainly create what kind of mental state." After Victor the Wolf Child was brought back to human society, his living environment was not much different from other normal people, and he enjoyed the fruits of social production. But can he be said to live in the mainstream society? "Returning to the mainstream" is not measured by matter, but by the degree of individual socialization. The real "return to the mainstream" is not simply to study in regular classes, but to find a resonance point in society wholeheartedly. Its development needs a long-term exploration process. Moreover, the situation in China is different from that in foreign countries, and more efforts are needed to find a way to "return to the mainstream" suitable for deaf students in China, but the significance of "return to the mainstream" cannot be denied. spe-edu 12

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3. Understanding of oral English teaching. spe-edu 12

Teacher Mei believes that oral English teaching for deaf students (students who are deaf but not dumb) is to "start from the roots and teach those who are deaf halfway to consolidate their oral English ability". Perhaps in the actual teaching process, oral English teaching is really aimed at teaching deaf students to speak. But in my opinion, the purpose of deaf students learning spoken English is not "deaf students can talk!" Or improve deaf students' oral ability, but let deaf students have basic lip reading ability, which is helpful to distinguish the structural differences between deaf students' sign language and written language (although there are differences in grammatical structure between spoken language and written language, the basic grammatical order is the same, and the grammatical relationship is the same), and build a bridge between deaf students' sign language and written language to facilitate deaf students to master written knowledge. It is only a means to promote deaf students to further learn scientific and cultural knowledge and integrate into the mainstream society. I don't agree with "oral learning for the purpose of teaching oral English". Any speech is not and should not be the purpose of education, but should be a tool. For deaf-mute students, spoken English also plays the same role. In this case, I think all deaf-mute students (including deaf-mute students and non-deaf-mute students) can learn spoken English in order to make deaf-mute students get used to a written language with a sign language structure different from that of deaf people. spe-edu 12

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4. The understanding of deaf sign language and its relationship with spoken language. spe-edu 12

Deaf sign language plays an extremely important role in the healthy growth of deaf people and is the basis for deaf people to communicate with other deaf people on an equal footing in deaf society. It can also promote deaf students to learn knowledge, understand things and understand society better, just as audio language can promote the growth of normal children. Deaf students need to master their own language in a critical period, constantly improve their understanding and grow up healthily. However, we all see that the knowledge of this society is mainly recorded and passed down in written language under the current conditions, and their grammatical structure is different from the sign language of the deaf, which is based on spoken language; Moreover, as we all know, the vocabulary of sign language is extremely poor, and Chinese words with very different meanings are often expressed with the same gesture, which is not conducive to deaf students' understanding and mastery of abstract words. Meanwhile, the rapid development of modern science, technology and culture depends on the language of the mainstream society. Just as we must master English now to understand the latest development of the world, deaf students only rely on their own sign language for the deaf, which is tantamount to the "closed door" in China's feudal era, being isolated from the world, so they cannot develop. On the other hand, spoken language is the basis of written language. Learning written language without spoken language is just like learning a foreign language without a language environment. No matter how many words you remember and how profound your grammar is, you can't use them flexibly. Moreover, deaf students not only need to increase the accumulated knowledge of human beings, but also need to increase their ability to communicate with normal people in order to promote their healthy physical and mental development. spe-edu 12

Therefore, I object to what Teacher Mei advocates: deaf students learn written language directly through sign language. I think this will cause deaf students to understand many Chinese words and delay their study. We should face up to the advantages and disadvantages of spoken language, combine sign language with spoken language learning, carry out bilingual teaching and jointly promote written language learning. It may be difficult at first, but once deaf students master the bridge of oral English, understand the meanings of different words represented by the same gesture, and understand the transformation between them, they will be even more powerful, so that their intellectual development will be synchronized with and even surpass normal children. Sign language and spoken language are complementary as different ways of human communication. spe-edu 12

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5. Is pure sign language teaching more beneficial to deaf students? spe-edu 12

In all his articles, Mr. Mei emphasized the importance of sign language in all aspects of deaf students' growth, even one of the decisive factors related to deaf students' morality, so he firmly supported sign language teaching. Sign language teaching can resonate with deaf students and attract them to learn and be human. But it is a double-edged sword. According to the relevant investigation, the language expression ability of teachers in deaf schools shows an abnormal degradation trend, first of all, the oral expression ability is degraded, and then the written expression ability is degraded. One of the reasons is influenced by the special language environment. Schools for the deaf have a "bilingual environment" in which they have lived for a long time. Although teachers tend to use Chinese (spoken and written), they are influenced by sign language, which leads to the degradation of teachers' language expression ability to some extent. The vocabulary of second-hand languages is extremely poor. Teachers often omit words that cannot be expressed in sign language. In addition, the syntactic rules of sign language are different from those of modern Chinese. Adverbs of degree such as "Shi" and "hen" are omitted in sign language and replaced by expressions or exaggerated gestures. Under the influence of long-term use of sign language, teachers often say "sign language" ... (Bi, Wang and Jia) In the long run, if schools do not pay attention to this point and do not give timely intervention, teachers' level will only decline, and the degradation of their language expression ability can only be reflected in the unclear explanation of problems in teaching, which will greatly promote the progress of deaf students. This situation still happens from time to time in the era of "taking spoken English as the main teaching means". If the role of oral English is completely denied and only sign language is used, can the teacher guarantee a good class? Can deaf students reach the development level of normal students? -Maybe it's a "?" . spe-edu 12

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Second, my opinion on language teaching for deaf students spe-edu 12

I watched a series of videos of teaching music and rhythm in spoken English, a language training class in Beijing No.1 School for the Deaf and the related articles by Teacher Mei. Personally, I think there is no more convincing teaching method than bilingual teaching from a macro perspective. When I first came into contact with bilingual teaching, I didn't quite understand the basic idea of bilingual teaching, but I just thought it might be another blind introduction. Taking this opportunity, I read many articles introducing bilingual teaching and got a general understanding of its basic guiding ideology. I think bilingual teaching is a great leap in the development of language teaching methods in deaf schools. I think if bilingual teaching is adopted in deaf schools, it will greatly promote the development of deaf students. spe-edu 12

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1. Bilingual teaching has a clear understanding of the language used by deaf students. spe-edu 12

(1) The necessity of sign language. spe-edu 12

A study by the Deaf Research Center of Bristol University found that from birth to three years old, the process of deaf children acquiring sign language in the life interaction with deaf mothers is synchronous with the process of listening children acquiring language in the communication with listening mothers during this period. In addition, "stroke" may lead to hearing loss, and also lead to deaf people losing their sign language ability, which shows that the left hemisphere of human language center also directs deaf people's sign language. It can be seen that sign language plays an equally important role in promoting the development of deaf people's language and cognition as oral language plays an equally important role in the development of normal children. spe-edu 12

The concept of "bilingual teaching" fully affirmed the deaf language-sign language and deaf culture. It affirms that sign language is the mother tongue of the deaf, and advocates using sign language as the first language that the deaf must master. It is best for deaf people to learn the most suitable language before they are three years old, so that deaf people can use this language to achieve better intellectual development and learn spoken and written language well. They advocate having deaf teachers, using deaf gestures to teach deaf children, and using healthy listeners as teachers to teach deaf students the mainstream language; Parents of deaf children should learn sign language and create an environment for sign language communication in the family ... Bilingual teaching emphasizes the great education in modern society and integrates education with life, which fully reflects the importance attached to deaf people and is really based on deaf students. spe-edu 12

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(2) Necessity of learning spoken English for deaf students spe-edu 12

Although the linguistic essence of deaf language is certain, deaf language does have its limitations in modern society. Deaf people have a small vocabulary, have no written language of their own, can't transmit information at different times and places, and can't record their own experiences; In addition, the deaf are scattered in the mainstream society, but they can't communicate with people who can't speak the deaf language in the mainstream society. If they don't learn the language of the mainstream society, they can't receive the corresponding scientific and cultural education. (Guo, 1999) For the above reasons, bilingual teaching emphasizes that deaf students should master the language of the deaf, and also requires them to master the language of their society. spe-edu 12

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2. My thoughts spe-edu 12

Bilingual teaching method has been introduced to China for many years, but in all kinds of discussions on deaf school education, everyone is concerned about whether "bilingual teaching" is really beneficial to the development of deaf students; In various newspapers and magazines, people from all walks of life in deaf education introduced the basic concept of "bilingual teaching"; Or the research on which language teaching method is more suitable for deaf students, without further introducing "bilingual teaching". For example, so far, there is a lack of basic implementation processes and steps of "bilingual teaching". We only know that bilingual teaching is beneficial, but we don't know how to carry it out. Facts speak plainer than words. I think instead of talking about what kind of language teaching method is more suitable in theory, it is better to show the implementation method of "bilingual teaching" and let the facts judge it. I write down my thoughts here, which is also the result of my analysis and thinking. spe-edu 12

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(1) The basic process of language teaching for deaf students. spe-edu 12

In my opinion, the process of deaf students learning sign language, spoken language and written language in the mainstream society is basically the same as that of our hearing-impaired children learning spoken language and learning a foreign language: they all master their mother tongue in the natural environment (deaf people's mother tongue is deaf sign language, healthy listeners are spoken language), and then when they master their mother tongue to a certain extent, they can start learning another language and use their mother tongue to promote foreign language learning. Among them, the acquisition of mother tongue should be accumulated and acquired under natural conditions; The study of "foreign language" is to create as many speech environments as possible on the basis of mastering the mother tongue to a certain extent, so as to achieve the best learning effect. In this respect, deaf students have greater advantages in learning oral English than healthy listeners: they are always in an oral environment, which is more conducive to mastering oral English. On this basis, I think the language learning of deaf students is carried out in a large language teaching environment, just as the language acquisition of normal children mainly depends on the surrounding environment. Language learning of deaf students is a social problem, not a personal matter. Their language teachers include: parents, deaf-mute teachers in deaf-mute schools, healthy listeners and every healthy listener in society. From the beginning: spe-edu 12

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First of all, in view of the important role of deaf sign language in the intellectual development of deaf people, schools and organizations for deaf children in society have the obligation to know the deaf children in their communities, and have the responsibility to let parents of deaf children know the new concept of language education, clearly understand the importance of deaf sign language to their normal development, provide parents with opportunities to learn deaf sign language, create a language environment suitable for deaf children's growth, try their best to solve the basic problems of sign language before entering school, and create conditions for them to pursue further studies in deaf schools. This goal can be achieved by setting up "parent schools" in the community. At the same time, the students in the "parent school" are not necessarily the parents of deaf students. If parents of all children can be mobilized to learn, the conditions for deaf children to acquire their mother tongue will be more abundant. Parents of hard of hearing children can decide what language to teach according to their children's needs. If parents want, they can also let the hard of hearing children learn sign language for the deaf. But I think that since hard of hearing children have the conditions to learn spoken English, they can directly carry out oral rehabilitation without learning sign language, so as not to let their actual development lag behind their potential ability. )spe-edu 12

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At school age, deaf children should also go to school for education. From the process of video recording and watching language training classes, I found that at present, in the classroom of deaf students, teachers are always deliberately pursuing students to "speak", regardless of high school and low grade. The most typical way is to let students speak by reading text paragraphs, rhymes in rhythm classes or songs in music classes. I'm not sure if it's because there is a good tacit understanding between teachers and students, so even if the students' pronunciation sounds "foggy" to me, teachers can still tell the students' right and wrong. However, I don't agree with this indiscriminate teaching method. There are still differences in Chinese learning in ordinary primary schools, especially in the teaching of deaf students. spe-edu 12

Compared with the teaching process in ordinary primary schools, I think language teaching in deaf schools can be divided into two stages: ① 1-3 grade, which is mainly used to consolidate deaf sign language and strengthen sign language practice related to spoken and written language. This course is guided by deaf teachers, which is similar to that of hearing-impaired children in primary school 1 grade and grade two, who gradually establish oral and written communication. Teachers who are good at listening should create a language environment, establish a preliminary connection between deaf sign language and mainstream social language (mainly spoken language), and let deaf students establish the relationship between the same gesture and different Chinese vocabulary. Therefore, teachers with good hearing should also understand the use of deaf sign language, and gradually introduce a small amount of grammatical sign language, compare deaf sign language, find out the differences between them, and be familiar with the grammatical rules of spoken language. (2) With the foundation of the first three years, in the study of grades 6-9, deaf students' reading ability can be strengthened in the classroom, and deaf students' sign language can be used to assist the learning of oral and written language, in which oral language is the basis of learning written language, but the key is not to let deaf students speak, but to let deaf students clearly understand the information communicated through reading. This is the requirement of language training class. In other courses, I don't think it is necessary to rigidly ask deaf students which language to use. The first criterion is that deaf students can express their thinking process most fluently-language is only a tool for learning and expression, not the ultimate goal of learning. spe-edu 12

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(2) Precautions. spe-edu 12

① The importance of deaf sign language must be emphasized in teaching. For deaf people, deaf sign language is the most fluent tool to express their thoughts and feelings, and it is also the basis for deaf people to communicate with each other in deaf society. In the process of deaf learning, it does not exist as a secondary factor, but as a positive factor to stimulate deaf people to learn written language. We should respect this. spe-edu 12

In my opinion, the purpose of bilingual teaching in oral English is to make deaf students learn written language better and clear the obstacles to communicate with healthy listeners. Therefore, it focuses on understanding the pronunciation mechanism of oral language through practicing oral mouth shape, airflow and phonetic application, so that deaf students can learn to read and master reading skills, and can judge what the other party is saying according to mouth shape, upper and lower palate, laryngeal movement and so on. After all, society is mainly composed of deaf people, and according to the current national conditions in China, it is still not up to the level that everyone can sign for deaf people. To complete the process of socialization, deaf people must rely on reading to understand the meaning of hearing people. Furthermore, according to the test of experts in Hong Kong and Taiwan Province, even after two or three years of rehabilitation training, 95% of deaf children with cochlear implants still rely on visual cues as the main source of information, that is, they need to look at words to help them understand other people's words, and only 5% of them can understand the conversation by listening without looking at words. (Chen Ying, 2000) illustrates the importance of reading training. Therefore, teachers should pay attention to their own mouth shape, speech speed and other factors in school and do everything possible to create a barrier-free environment for deaf students in deaf schools. spe-edu 12

③ Bilingual teaching is a teaching method combining deaf sign language with mainstream social language. I think it's far-fetched to add oral English to rhythm and music classes now. From a rhythm class for the deaf in Beijing. Throughout the class, the only spoken English that students can learn is reciting children's songs, and the rest of the time the teacher is talking about how to perform. First, it can't train language; Secondly, it deprives deaf students of the development of creative thinking, which is not conducive to their cognitive development. In my opinion, because the contents of rhythm class and music class are generally common and understandable things in students' lives, deaf students can give full play to their imagination, create freely and elaborate their creative intentions. I think the most exciting part of a deaf-mute rhythm class is not the process taught by the teacher, but the scene where the teacher lets the students freely play different animals according to their own preferences. In this process, it can be seen that students like the roles they play. Almost none of the animals played by students are exactly the same as those taught by teachers. They are all created by themselves, far higher than those taught by teachers. If the teacher is not trying to catch up with the progress, students can fully explain their intentions-not only training their language ability, but also increasing their imagination and thinking ability, which is helpful to promote the cognitive development of deaf students in many ways. spe-edu 12

The ideas I listed are aimed at deaf people, not including hard of hearing children. For hard of hearing children, I agree with Mr. Mei's view that they should be treated differently, but I still advocate that they should learn oral English by all means to avoid the detour of "deaf sign language → spoken language → written language". Don't go far if you can do it in one step, and everything is based on optimal development. spe-edu 12

⑤ Although I don't quite agree with Mr. Mei's view on sign language teaching, I agree with what he said: "The experimental work of oral education, sign language and other deaf-mute education should be cautious and the scope should not be too large. We must adhere to the principle of gradually expanding and advancing on the basis of success, that is, adopting a point-to-point approach. " ① The advantages of bilingual teaching are currently in China, and the conclusion is only based on the needs of theory and social development, and no conclusive evidence can be produced to show that "bilingual teaching must be good". Experiments are needed to show that it is not appropriate to unify the whole country by decree. But I believe that as long as we are based on the interests of the deaf, we can realize the progress and development of deaf education and give the deaf more opportunities for equal development. spe-edu 12

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References: spe-edu 12

1, Mei: Reflections on Language Teaching Methods for the Deaf in China, Educational Science, No.3 spe-edu 12, 1999.

2. Shen Yulin: Introduction to Bilingual Teaching in Deaf Schools, Special Education in China, No.4 SPE-EDU 1998.

3. Bi, Wang and Jia: On the Degeneration of Teachers' Language Expression Ability in Deaf Schools, Modern Special Education,No. 1996, spe-edu 12.

4. Wu Anan: Bilingual Teaching: New Ideas, New Methods and New Breakthroughs in School Education for the Deaf, Modern Special Education, No.4 spe-edu 12, 1998.

5. Guo: On Bilingual Education for Deaf Children, Modern Special Education, No.6, Shanghai Education Press 1999.

6. Mei: Language Teaching in Schools for the Deaf, Modern Special Education, SPE-EDU 1998, No.6.

7. Chen Ying: "Factors Affecting the Speech Reading of Deaf Children and Problems Needing Attention", Modern Special Education, No.3 spe-edu 12, 2000.

8. Park Yongxin, editor-in-chief: Dictionary of Special Education, Huaxia Publishing House, SPE-EDU 1996 edition.

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