15-Month Summer/Online Masters in Sign Language Teaching

The Department of American Sign Language and Deaf Studies offers a M.A. degree in Sign Language Teaching. This program is designed to prepare future sign language teachers, who will provide exemplary leadership in the sign language teaching field. Students will be introduced to key theoretical and methodological issues involved in sign language instruction including curriculum development, assessment, and incorporating Deaf culture into the language curriculum. In addition, students will undertake a teaching practicum and internship under the supervision of a cooperating teacher. An electronic portfolio is required at the completion of the program, which represents the culmination of the student's academic performance.

MASTERS PROGRAM STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES

Graduates from the MA program in Sign Language Teaching

1. Will demonstrate theoretical knowledge and display competence in classroom settings regarding methodological and socio-political issues involved in sign language teaching, curriculum development and assessment
2. Will produce graduate level Sign Language and English texts that demonstrate knowledge of and critical inquiry into key concepts in the Sign Language Teaching field
3. Will recognize the importance of the ASL teacher as a system change agent and apply this in practice utilizing effective leadership, advocacy, consultation, and collaboration to influence change on the individual, group, and organizational and systemic levels
4. Will demonstrate preparedness to seek and obtain employment as a teaching professional in the field of sign language teaching

*The Masters in Sign Language Teaching program is not a state approved licensure program or part of the professional programs unit accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). Instead, our students are required to successfully complete national certification with the ASL Teachers Association (ASLTA) prior to graduation. If you are seeking employment in K-12 school settings, you would be best advised to contact your state office of licensure and certification to see if our program meets their requirements. We are happy to assist with this process.

Admissions Procedures and Requirements

Applicants for the M.A. in Sign Language Teaching must complete the application procedures and meet the requirements for graduate study at Gallaudet University. Visit the Graduate Admissions web site for more information and a checklist of application requirements. Detailed program information and course descriptions are also available in the Graduate Catalog.

*Students are admitted to the Sign Language Teaching masters program once a year, in the summer.

Program Specific Requirements:

Documentation of prior professional development:

• Education and/or pedagogical strategies
• Deaf history and culture
• Sign language linguistics, discourse and structure
• Classifiers and/or depiction
• Fingerspelling and numbers
• Non-manual signals and markers
• Other relevant courses and professional development will be considered.

Professional development includes workshops, conferences and presentations you have attended in the past. Professional development does not include your work (teaching) experience or courses that are already on your undergraduate/graduate transcripts. Undergraduate/graduate transcripts are required by Graduate Admissions, and will be reviewed separately. Document your professional development in a list format, where the name of the workshop is listed, the dates, sponsoring agency and the number of hours attended, with a running total at the end of the list. Click here for a sample format (retrieved from American Sign Language Teaching Association website).

In addition to your professional development list, you are required to submit evidence of your American Sign Language Proficiency Interview (ASLPI) score of 4 or above to the coordinator. For teachers of other signed languages, you will be required to submit evidence of your ASLPI score of 3+ or above to the coordinator.  Other types of sign language proficiency interview scores will not be accepted.  The fees for the ASLPI are outlined on this website: asldes.gallaudet.edu/fees.xml. The ASLPI fee is waived if you are a current, full-time Gallaudet student. To schedule an ASLPI interview, please email aslpi@gallaudet.edu.

Please send the documentation of your prior professional development and your ASLPI score to the Graduate Admissions Office at: gradapplications@gallaudet.edu

Graduate Admissions Requirements:

Please complete the following requirements as outlined on the Graduate Admissions website:

• Online graduate application
• Goal statements (emailed to GradApplications@gallaudet.edu)
• Submission of all official postsecondary transcript(s)
• Three letters of recommendation (Follow this link, too, for further instructions)

Mail the official transcript(s) and letters of recommendation to:
Graduate Admissions
Kendall Hall 101
Gallaudet University
800 Florida Avenue NE
Washington DC 20002

When your online graduate application, goal statements, all postsecondary transcript(s), and three letters of recommendation are on file at Graduate Admissions, you will be contacted by the Masters in Sign Language Teaching screening committee for a video interview.

If the department decides to recommend you for admission to the Dean of Graduate School, the Dean will make the final decision regarding your application.

Financial Costs for Program

Since this program is primarily summer/online, the full-time tuition for US citizens will be $760 per credit for Fall 2012 and Spring 2013. Summer 2013 tuition has not been announced yet. The program is 36 - 42 credits in total, starting with 12-15 credit hours during your first summer in the program. The approximate minimum cost for the entire program will be $23,000 for US citizens, not including fees, room and board. Financial assistance may be available but is not guaranteed.

Program of Study

Summer I (On Campus)

ASL 709 Sign Language Media Production (3)

ASL 724 Sign Language Linguistics for Sign Language Instructors (3)

ASL 741 Methods of Sign Language Teaching (3)

ASL 743 Curriculum Development for Sign Language Instruction (3)
ASL 760 Assessing Sign Language Skills (3)

Fall I (Online)

LIN 510 Introduction to First and Second Language Acquisition (3)

Spring I (Online)

ASL 770 Sign Language Planning and Advocacy (3)

Summer II (On Campus)

DST 705 Sign and the Philosophy of Language (3)
DST 710 Literary Traditions in the Deaf Community (3)
DST 714 Critical Pedagogy (3)
ASL 795 Special Topics in ASL and Deaf Studies Digital Media and Marketing (3)

Additional Required Courses (to be taken during the program)

ASL 752 Sign Language Practicum* (3) (face-to-face or online, taken either Summer, Fall or Spring semesters)
ASL 762 Seminar in Sign Language Teaching (3) (online, taken either Fall or Spring semesters)
ASL 790 Sign Language Teaching Internship* (3) (face-to-face or online, taken either Summer, Fall or Spring semesters)

*Teaching practicum and internship can be completed during the summer, fall or spring semester after completing the core courses (ASL 709, 724, 741, 743 and 760). The practicum and internship site and cooperating teacher must be approved by the department in advance.  Candidates with extensive ASL teaching experience and full-time employment in the ASL teaching field may apply for a practicum and/or internship waiver.

Summer 2013

New Students: June 10 - July 19 ( with break from June 29 - July 7**)
Returning Students: June 17 - July 19 (with break from June 29 - July 7**)
Practicum and Internship opportunities are available at Gallaudet in late July and August after program ends on July 19th

**We are attending the ASLTA conference from July 2-7 in Charlotte, NC - Come join us!

Summer 2014

New Students: June 9 - July 18 (with break from June 28 - July 6)
Returning Students: June 16 - July 18 
(with break from June 28 - July 6)
Practicum and Internship opportunities are available at Gallaudet in late July and August after the program ends on July 18th

Email SignLanguageTeaching@gallaudet.edu if you have questions about the program.