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Sign Language Variation and Implications for Deaf Education in Japan

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Sign Language Variation and Implications for Deaf Education in Japan View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE 研究論文 RESEARCH ARTICLES 手話の多様性そして日本のろう教育への課題 Sign Language Variation and Implications for Deaf Education in Japan 角田 麻里 KAKUTA, Mari ● 国際基督教大学大学院教育学研究科 Graduate School of Education, International Christian University 手話，ろう教育，言語の多様性 sign language, deaf education, language variation ABSTRACT 本論では，ろう者が使用する，Visual-gestural 言語（手話）に注目し，日本で使用されている三種類の 手話の分類：「日本手話」，「対応手話」，「中間手話」について詳しく検討をする．ろう者の場合，言語環 境及び教育環境がさまざまであり，言語の多様性が見られる．親が聴者の子供たちは，音声言語で育ち， 親がろう者の子供たちは，手話で育ち手話を自然に習得する．日本では，かつて手話は教育現場で禁じ られていたが，少しずつ認可されている．本論では「手話」がどのようにろう学校で取り扱われている のか調べ，手話の多様性について理解が広まることを願う． This paper focuses on the visual-gestural language of the deaf by discussing the three types of shuwa used in Japan: ‘Nihon Shuwa’ (Japanese Sign Language or JSL), ‘Taiou Shuwa’ (Manually Coded Japanese) and ‘Chuukan Shuwa’ (Contact Signing). Diversity in language use occurs for the deaf as their linguistic and educational backgrounds are never the same: some deaf children have hearing parents and are surrounded by spoken language, while others have Deaf parents and acquire sign language naturally. In Japan, sign language use has been prohibited in deaf schools but is currently gaining more acceptance. This paper aims to investigate the status of ‘shuwa’ in deaf schools in Tokyo to raise awareness of the variations that exist when the term ‘shuwa’ is used. Educational Studies 52 191 International Christian University Introduction Three Variations in ‘Shuwa’ Most children in Japan learn and study in their Nihon Shuwa (JSL) first language. But there are children who cannot The natural language for the Deaf is called acquire Japanese as their first language because they Japanese Sign Language (JSL) (in Japanese, ‘Nihon are deaf (‘deaf’ with a small ‘d’ will be used in a Shuwa’). Unlike spoken languages, sign languages neutral manner while ‘Deaf’ with a capital ‘D’ refers use the visual-gestural modality. This characteristic to a linguistic minority that uses sign language). The of sign language resulted in many misconceptions natural language for these children should be sign that sign languages are only gestures and not language but the Japanese educational system insists language, and culminated in sign language being on the acquisition of Japanese, thus depriving deaf banned in deaf education. children of their rights to learn in a visual language. Research on American Sign Language (ASL) Throughout history, the educational methods used shows that sign languages are more iconic than to teach the deaf have varied. The current trend in spoken ones (Emmorey, 2002). Since sign languages Japan is slowly shifting towards the recognition that are visual languages, many signs represent the sign language should be used in deaf schools. In object or things being described. For example, when Japan, sign language is referred to as ‘shuwa’. On describing the appearance of a person, signers often the surface, this is beneficial for deaf children, but give detailed traits of the person so that the viewer a closer examination of the term ‘shuwa’ and of its can actually visualize the person being discussed. usage reveal that variations exist and that many types If a signer is trying to explain that the person wears of ‘shuwa’ do not refer to the natural sign language glasses, the sign for ‘glasses’ is made (with both of the deaf. hands drawing the line of the frame of glasses), then The first half of this paper aims to look at the signer actually draws the shape of the glasses variations in ‘shuwa’ to investigate how these near their eyes. If one needs to describe ‘the man variations may affect the education of the deaf. The is wearing square-framed glasses’ in English, there term ‘shuwa’ is very broad and encompasses ‘Nihon is no iconic connection between the meanings of Shuwa’ (Japanese Sign Language or JSL), ‘Taiou each word in the sentence. But in ASL, the sign that Shuwa’ (Manually Coded Japanese or language will have the meaning of ‘squared-frame’ is similar signed according to Japanese grammar) and to a gesture that actually draws the shape of the ‘Chuukan Shuwa’ (Contact Signing). These three glasses. This was one of the characteristics of ASL distinctions are based on a model of sign language that caused it to be perceived as not being a true variation proposed earlier by Yazawa (1996, as cited language. Careful attention reveals that, although in Nakamura, 2006). Note however that the term, the signs for ‘glasses’ and ‘square-framed’ may look ‘Dentouteki Shuwa’, that Yazawa uses is referred to iconic, other signs, such as ‘man’ (signed with open here as ‘Nihon Shuwa’ (JSL). The second half of this hands and the thumb touching the forehead and the paper discusses these three types of sign variety for chest), do not have iconic images. The sign for man deaf education in Japan. is arbitrary in its relationship to the actual meaning. In JSL, ‘man’ is shown by the thumbs-up sign, indicating that sign languages around the world are not universal. In the Japanese context, people typically think that 192 Educational Studies 52 International Christian University JSL is ungrammatical because it has no particles. mode. Stevens (1980) cautions teachers of the deaf Ichida (2001) objects to this view and provides not to use Manually Coded English (MCE) as a tool evidence that not all languages in the world have to teach language but as a tool for communication particles. Moreover, word-order and Non-Manual that may lead to language learning. According to Signals (NMS) (such as head movement, eye/ Supalla (1991), MCE is different from ASL and eyebrow movement, mouthing and eye gaze) have lacks the language component of ASL because it important grammatical roles in JSL. For example, does not have the modality constraints that ASL has. one can make different types of questions by To prove this hypothesis, Supalla (1991) observed changing the head placement (like tilting the head deaf children in an MCE-based educational setting. forward). The children did not use MCE and case markings Ichida (2001) describes many linguistic aspects of English were missing from their communication of JSL and clearly states that JSL is a language. He mode. The question of different modalities in spoken believes problems have arisen in deaf education and sign language and the possibility of actually because hearing teachers are not aware that their transferring a spoken language to a signed system students have such a complex language and teachers was raised in this study. think they have to teach the children ‘shuwa’ instead Torigoe (1996) provides reasons for why such a of teaching in ‘shuwa’. system has spread in Japan. In sign language circles and sign language courses offered by the municipal Taiou Shuwa governments in Japan, the textbooks are in Japanese, Japanese Sign Language is a language for the Deaf providing an advantageous situation for hearing that developed naturally, but manually coded signs teachers. Thus the so-called ‘shuwa’ learned in Japan exist also that were invented artificially to follow the is mostly ‘Taiou Shuwa’ and heavily influenced by grammar of Japanese to support spoken language Japanese word order. development. Since most deaf school teachers are In the Declaration of the Deaf that promoted the hearing, it is inevitable that they speak and sign at Deaf as a linguistic minority, Kimura and Ichida the same time. (1995) used the term SimCom (abbreviation for When the Deaf adapts to the hearing, it is usually simultaneous communication) to describe how in the form of Taiou Shuwa, which means that the hearing would produce signs as they spoke the signs used in JSL are arranged in the order or mouthed Japanese utterances. One of the main of spoken Japanese, so that it is easier for the points in the Declaration of the Deaf is that a clear hearing to understand. Are these signed systems distinction between those who are deaf, hard of languages? Bos (1994) states that signed languages hearing and adventitiously deafened should be made are unnatural and are not real languages. They are as Deaf people prefer JSL while hard of hearing ones artificial as they try to fit the signs of sign languages prefer SimCom (as outlined in Quay and Rackham, into the grammar of spoken ones. In the English 1999). setting, Strong (1988) also makes clear that signed Municipal governments, however, have not systems used in a classroom that advocates the made such distinctions in their many sign language Total Communication Approach (an approach that class offerings. When people finish such classes believes that any form of communication mode can offered mostly free of charge, they believe that be used to communicate with the deaf) is an artificial they have acquired JSL. Most of the time, their code used to represent English in a visual-gestural signing is heavily influenced by Japanese grammar Educational Studies 52 193 International Christian University as they usually speak and sign at the same time research on the Deaf in the U.S.A., the term, ‘contact (SimCom). When these people interpret for the Deaf signing’, is equivalent to ‘Chuukan Shuwa’ so it will they believe that their signing is ‘better’ and more henceforth be referred to as contact signing. ‘correct’. Contact signing is used when there is language Sign language classes in Musashino city, contact between different signers and/or different for example, consist of four levels: beginner, hearing signers (Messing, 1999). It is also called intermediate, advanced and interpreter training. pidgin signs. Pidgin signs form when there is Up until the advanced class, there is always a interaction between people of different backgrounds pair of instructors where one is deaf and one is with different language abilities. Since deaf people hearing. But the final training class for interpreters are raised in different environments, the dominant is taught only by a hearing instructor.
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