Bachelor of Arts Honours: South African Sign Language

Qualification in South African Sign Language (SASL)

Purpose:

The purpose of this qualification is to produce skilled South African Sign Language (SASL) practitioners who can be involved in issues pertaining to South African Sign Language and the Deaf community in the context of social transformation. Graduates will be able to offer their services in terms of much needed research in the field of South African Sign Language. The qualification will enable graduates to develop research questions, gather data independently and write research reports in various areas of study, which will contribute not only to the development of a marginalised language, but also to the development of opportunities for deaf South Africans. Graduates, who prefer not to focus on research only, can contribute in the fields of interpreting, by providing much-needed access to mainstream society for deaf persons and to education, as educators who are proficient in South African Sign Language. In addition, those graduates who have already majored in drama could combine South African Sign Language with two courses from Dramatic Arts in an Honours programme and so contribute to the development of the dramatic arts in South African Sign Language for deaf audiences. This qualification aims to strengthen students' knowledge and use of South African Sign Language at the discourse level using different registers by means of the creative production of texts, as well as the translation of texts, both from South African Sign Language to English, and English to South African Sign Language. Specialised vocabulary will be developed accordingly.

Rationale:

South African Sign Language (SASL) is offered in a very limited number of undergraduate qualifications as a major subject and there is a consequent lack of Postgraduate qualifications in South African Sign Language. This has resulted in a dearth of research in the field of South African Sign Language. With the development of a task team convened by the Minister of Education to address the matter of South African Sign Language as a subject for the school curriculum, there will also be a need for skilled South African Sign Language practitioners. This, in turn, means that there is an urgent need for research that codifies South African Sign Language. This qualification will be available to a wide range of students with a Bachelor of Arts Degree and the required proficiency in South African Sign Language. The current student profile indicates that students majoring in South African Sign Language have interests in education, clinical psychology, clinical educational psychology, interpreting and drama. Graduates will therefore add value to all of these career paths. There is, at present, a limited number of available South African Sign Language practitioners in South Africa. Therefore skilled South African Sign Language graduates are sorely needed in the education sector. In addition, it has become apparent that there is very little research available on the documenting and codifying of South African Sign Language structures and dialects. Due to the past fragmentation of the Deaf community in education, South African Sign Language is a language undergoing rapid change and research is needed to document this. Competent signers need to be trained as interpreters. According to the Deaf Federation of South Africa (DEAFSA) there are approximately 500,000 deaf people using South African Sign Language and approximately 188 interpreters active in the field with varying levels of competency in South African Sign Language. Graduates in this qualification would be able to follow interpreting as a career, thus ensuring access to information for a marginalised group. Deaf people have limited access to mental health services in South Africa due to lack of interpreters and resources. It is envisaged that some of the graduates will go on to study clinical psychology and will be able to provide therapy to the deaf without the use of interpreters. South Africa has long lagged behind other countries in offering training in the field of sign language. For the last 20 years, such training has been widely offered in Europe, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Australia. The registration of this qualification in South African Sign Language will provide education and training in a priority area of need in South Africa.