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Students who are
fluent in American Sign Language (ASL) often struggle with
written English. ASL is the first language for many ASL users,
and English is a non-native second language.
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Because there is
no written form of ASL, there are no newspapers, magazines or
books written in ASL. Translating ASL to written English or vice
versa is a multi-step and inexact process.
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A common
misconception (as stated previously) about ASL is that it is a
simple translation of English. In fact, it is a distinct
language.
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Consequently, an
ASL speaker faces many of the same challenges with reading and
writing in English as others for whom English is a second
language. Because written language learning is typically linked
to hearing and producing language, a student who is deaf has an
added barrier to learning written English.
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D/HOH students
differ from their ESL counterparts in that they cannot take
advantage of incidental learning that takes place in the home,
on tv, etc.