The American Sign Language (ASL) & Deaf Studies minor provides students with intermediate to advanced proficiency in American Sign Language and a foundational understanding of Deaf history, culture and contemporary issues. Through language study, cultural exploration and community engagement, students develop the skills needed to communicate effectively with Deaf individuals and gain insight into the experiences, diversity and contributions of Deaf communities. This minor supports students pursuing careers in education, health sciences, social services, linguistics and fields that value cultural and linguistic diversity.
Requirements
Prerequisites
Two prerequisites courses are required for admission into the minor program and are not counted toward the minor; may be satisfied by placement testing.
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ASLC 2305 | American Sign Language 1 | 4 |
| ASLC 2315 | American Sign Language 2 | 4 |
Required Courses
A minimum of 18 credit hours of ASLC courses, including a minimum of 9 upper-division credit hours, are required for the minor. All coursework applied to the minor must be completed with a grade of C- or better; no pass/fail work may be applied. The grade point average for all coursework must equal 2.000 (C) or higher.
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Core Courses | ||
| ASLC 2325 | American Sign Language 3 | 4 |
| ASLC 2335 | American Sign Language 4 | 3 |
| ASLC 3000 | Deaf Studies | 3 |
| Electives | ||
| Students must complete at least 9 credit hours in electives: | 9 | |
| American Sign Language 5 | ||
| ASL Literature and Deaf Arts | ||
| Exploring Deaf Culture Through Media & Film | ||
Additional upper-division elective courses approved by the department. | ||
| Total Credit Hours | 19 | |
Plan of Study
| Year One | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall Semester | Credit Hours | |
| ASLC 2305 | American Sign Language 1 | 0 |
| Credit Hours | 0 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| ASLC 2315 | American Sign Language 2 | 0 |
| Credit Hours | 0 | |
| Year Two | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| ASLC 2325 | American Sign Language 3 | 4 |
| Credit Hours | 4 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| ASLC 2335 | American Sign Language 4 | 3 |
| ASLC 3000 | Deaf Studies | 3 |
| Credit Hours | 6 | |
| Year Three | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| ASLC 2345 | American Sign Language 5 | 3 |
| Credit Hours | 3 | |
| Spring Semester | ||
| ASLC 3300 | ASL Literature and Deaf Arts | 3 |
| Credit Hours | 3 | |
| Year Four | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| ASLC 3400 | Exploring Deaf Culture Through Media & Film | 3 |
| Credit Hours | 3 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 19 | |
Learning Outcomes
By the completion of the program, students will be able to:
- Demonstrate intermediate-to-advanced proficiency in American Sign Language, including conversational fluency, narrative ability and the use of appropriate grammatical structures, nonmanual signals and classifiers.
- Demonstrate receptive language skills through comprehension of a range of signed messages, narratives, conversational interactions and culturally embedded texts delivered by diverse ASL signers.
- Explain key concepts, values and practices within Deaf culture, including identity, community norms, language ideologies and the sociocultural experiences of Deaf people.
- Utilize foundational theoretical frameworks, such as Deaf Gain, Deafhood, bilingual-bicultural perspectives and linguistic human rights, to analyze the cultural, historical and social issues affecting Deaf communities.
- Summarize major events, figures and social movements in Deaf history and describe how they shape present-day experiences and policies.
- Apply culturally responsive and respectful communication practices when interacting with Deaf individuals and when participating in Deaf community events or ASL-based activities.
- Evaluate issues related to accessibility, language access, education, interpreting and inclusion through a critical, justice-oriented lens informed by Deaf Studies.
- Analyze ASL literature, storytelling genres and signed media using appropriate linguistic and cultural frameworks.
- Demonstrate the ability to use ASL and Deaf cultural knowledge applicable to professional contexts such as education, social services, health care, advocacy, accessibility or community engagement.