American Sign Language 121 – ASL I (#1409)
Course Syllabus | Winter Quarter 2014
Instructor: Ron Podmore, M.Ed
National Board Certified Instructor
E-mail: Ron.Podmore@bellevuecollege.edu
Office Hours: By appointment (R230L)
Class Hours and
Location
Days: Tuesdays and Thursdays
Time: 5:30-7:40 pm Location: R201
Welcome to American Sign
Language. I am optimistic that you will enjoy and gain exposure to a new
language and culture while you are learning. I am thrilled you chose my
language; American Sign Language is a visual language, fully capable to
expressing any thought on the part of spoken language.
Incorporate what you learn each day; the
more you use it, the more fluent you will become. If you can find the time,
become involved with the ASL club and activities that take place on campus and
around the region.
Course Objectives
This course aims at the acquisition of the four
basic skills (Receptive, Expressive signing, Culture and Communication) of
American Sign Language. By the end of the course, students are expected to have
a good grasp of the material presented (with at least a C or better to
transfer) in Lessons 1-4 of Signing Naturally, Vol. 1, which includes
the following:
1) Greetings, Introductions&
Culture 2) Exchanging personal
information
3) Discussing living
situations 4) Sharing information about ourselves and
family.
5) Building on receptive and expressive ability of
fingerspelling skills
Texts Materials Required:
1) Signing Naturally (Dawn Sign Press),Volume 1 (Lessons
1-4)
2) 1001 Signs To know
It is important that you check your engrade account and BC email account regularly for announcements from me as
I learn how to work the software. However, If class is
canceled due to weather, BC will inform you through MyBC Sites and/or email and
tell you the assignment(s) for that day. There may be other important
information and schedule changes sent to you.
Course Requirements and Classroom Learning Atmosphere
Performance (Attendance & Participation)
Class
attendance is mandatory, and will count toward your daily performance grade.
Tardiness or leaving early will result consequences. If you miss a class, you
are responsible for obtaining missed information and material. Active
participation is expected at all times, including taking notes, asking
questions (very much encouraged!), and watching/reinforcing what I teach on a
consistent basis. If you miss class, please email me, and be sure to check your
MyBC Class Sites for handouts, lecture notes, and announcements.
Bring your interactive
notebook & Signing Naturally workbook to
class everyday. Asking questions is highly encouraged. Don’t be afraid to make
mistakes or worry that your question may be a “dumb” one.
This is
a silent environment. No talking. Ever.
By doing such, you will become immersed in the language you’ve chosen at a much
quicker pace. Also, if you have any
suggestions on how to improve the class, I’m all “eyes.” It’s been a few years
since I’ve taught at the college level and I welcome your opportunity to make
sure the class is professionally rigorous enough, yet flexible for individual
student learning styles.
Please turn off and put away cell phones. No texting,
ipods, etc. allowed while in class. Laptops are certainly encouraged if this is
your main mechanism to how you record what you learn in lieu of your
interactive notebooks.
Homework: The “Daily Schedule” lists the homework assignments
and when they are due. Until I figure out how to upload, I’ll pass out the
assignments.
Before you turn in your homework, be sure to CHECK
YOUR WORK and make all necessary corrections, using a different color writing
utensil/pen. Answer keys are provided in the back of your books. Do not erase your original answer, as
they will be valuable study aids for exams. (Don’t just copy the answers down—think
about your answers and ask me if you don’t understand your mistake. Your answer
may not be wrong!) You will receive FULL CREDIT as long as you thoroughly check
your work (i.e., I will not deduct points for your mistakes, no matter how
numerous they may be).
1)
There may be additional homework assigned throughout
the quarter. These will be announced in class. DVD exercises may need to be completed using a home dvd player or in the
Language Lab (A244). We will set aside time in class to work with exercises posted in the Signing Naturally curriculum on
an as needed basis.
2)
Please be aware there is no sound in the Signing
Naturally workbook/dvd.
3)
I am a strong proponent for two different types of
assessments (traditionally referred to as exams). There are receptive exams
(your ability to understand what it is that I am signing to you…quizzes, tests,
etc) and then there are standards based
instructional receptive exams. With standards based exams, you can work towards
demonstrating mastery of a given topic/assignment as many times up until the
last three class sessions. For example, in being able to demonstrate the
alphabet, A-Z in a timed format, if you don’t demonstrate mastery on that day,
you are allowed to replicate it until it is demonstrated with 100% mastery,
even if that is several weeks later. Out of growth, comes success.
Assignments,
Exams and Quizzes:
ASL Quizzes
are very short in duration and generally are limited to fingerspelled words, numbers and
individual ASL concepts. ASL Exams are
more in-depth and cover translating ASL concepts to English based sentences.
In addition, there will be one ASL
objective, culture exam, (multiple choice in format) towards the end of
quarter. I try to introduce students to elements of Deafness as a culture and
not simply limit to instruction of ASL. Please make sure you bring a scan tron
and a pencil on that day.
As a general rule, there are no make-ups for quizzes. If you
encounter unavoidable circumstances (illness, family emergency), email me at
your earliest convenience and lets see what we can come to consensus. If
you have any concerns, don’t hesitate to discuss them with me – the earlier,
the better.
There is a calendar of assignments and dates for expressive exams and
receptive exams assignments. Break down of learning evidence I want from you:
·
Receptive Quizzes 4
out of 5 (worst quiz can be dropped or absent)
·
Important stuff
·
Multiple Choice Exam 1
(Items pertaining to culture of
ASL/Deafness) (Scantron required)
·
Assignments Units
1-4
Grading
The grade breakdown is as follows:
A: 94-100% B+: 87-89% C+: 77-79% D+: 67-69%
A-: 90-93% B: 83-86% C: 73-76% D: 60-66%
B-: 80-82% C-: 70-72% F: 59% & below
The
Final Quarter Grade will be calculated based on the following information:
1.
Attendance/Participation, classwork/homework
2.
Quizzes
3.
Signed Presentations (Standards Based
Grade-Expressive)
4.
Exams
Affirmation
of Inclusion:
Bellevue College is committed to
maintaining an environment in which every member of the campus community feels
welcome to participate in the life of the college, free from harassment and
discrimination. We value our different backgrounds at Bellevue College, and
students, faculty, staff members, and administrators are to treat one another
with dignity and respect. http://bellevuecollege.edu/about/goals/inclusion.asp With this in mind, if there are religious
observances that require you to miss a class, please let me know what I can do
to accommodate this request.
Academic
Conduct
Cheating is a serious offense,
whether on homework or exams. Inappropriate/disruptive
classroom behaviors are also violations of the Student Code of Conduct at
Bellevue College. Refer to the Arts and Humanities Division Policy at: www.bellevuecollege.edu and pull up the ArtsHum/studentinfo.asp.
Disability
Resource Center (DRC)
The Disability Resource Center serves students with a wide array of
learning challenges and disabilities. If you are a student who has a disability
or learning challenge for which you have documentation or have seen someone for
treatment and if you feel you may need accommodations in order to be successful
in college, please contact us as soon as possible. If you are a student
with a documented autism spectrum disorder, there is a program of support
available to you. If you are a person who requires assistance in
case of an emergency situation, such as a fire, earthquake, etc, please meet
with your individual instructors to develop a safety plan within the first week
of the quarter. The DRC office is temporarily located in the Library Media
Center (D126) or you can call our reception desk at 425.564.2498. Deaf students
can reach us by video phone at 425-440-2025 or by TTY at 425-564-4110. Please
visit our website for application information into our program and other
helpful links at: www.bellevuecollege.edu/drc
If you require accommodations based on a documented disability, have
medical information to share, or need special arrangements in case of emergency
evacuation, please inform your instructor at the beginning of the quarter so I
can help you reach your full potential with respect to your disability.
Public Safety The Bellevue
College (BC) Public Safety Department’s well trained and courteous
non-commissioned staff provides personal safety, security, crime prevention,
preliminary investigations, and other services to the campus community, 24
hours per day, 7 days per week. Their phone number is 425.564.2400. Public Safety is located in K100.
About Ron Podmore: Mr. Podmore attended the Gallaudet
University in Washington, D.C., (Worlds only university for the Deaf) but
received his B.A. from Western Washington University (Bellingham) and his M.Ed degree from Lewis & Clark College (Portland,
Oregon). He is the published author of two books; the first is an authorized
biography on Academy award winning Deaf actress Marlee
Matlin and the second is about Usher Syndrome in the Deaf community.
BE GOOD
DO WELL LEARN ASL
Calendar Dates
January 6: Welcome to
ASL: Syllabus and Calendar Dates. A-Z introduction appropriate seating style for ASL Instruction.
January 8 Instruction
Please remember to self correct
all 4 assignments with a
different colored writing utensil prior to handing in.
January 15
Expressive Quiz: (A-Z 10-15 seconds)
Receptive Quiz
January 20 Martin Luther King Holiday
No Class
January 22 Instruction
Homework: Unit One Summarize viii-ix (10 sentences)
Page 22, 24,
31
Summarize
Andrew Foster page 14-15 (5 sentences)
Summarize I.King Jordan-CBS (10 sentences)
Homework (Page 13
#1-10, # 1-10)
Mini
Dialogue Page 35
January 27 Instruction
January 29 Receptive Test (Fingerspelling/raw signs & sentences)
Unit
one
February 3 Instruction
February 5
Receptive Quiz
February 10 Homework:
Unit Two: Wiki: Marlee Matlin (5 sentences)
Page
58, 59 # practice
Summarize
page 56-57 (5 sentences)
Page
60, 82 and 89 (Autobiographies)
February
12 Receptive Quiz
February
17 Professional
Development Day
No Class
February
19 Instruction
February
24 Receptive Quiz
February
26 Instruction
Homework:
Unit Three Summarize
113-114 (8 sentences)
117
“Z” words & 129 # practice & 139 “Order… words”
Summarize:
146-147 “Spatial Agreement &
Modifying
verb movement (4)
144:
Minidialogues 1-10 & 154: Autobiography # 1-2-3
Wiki
& internet: Greg Hlibok (5 sentences)
Please
remember to self-correct all 4 assignments with a different colored writing
utensil prior to handing in.
March 5 Receptive Test: Signs
& Sentences: Unit Two
March 10 Receptive Quiz (Fingerspelling/simple
signs)
March 12
Receptive Test Unit
Three
March 17 1:1 Demonstration Story (First ½ of class)
(Expressive)
Homework: Unit
4. Page 185 “Rocking numbers”
Page
198: How old 31-12
Page 198: Identify 3
type #1-10
Page
205: Ten years laters
206: What # is it? 31-27
213-214:
You pick any 2 of the 3 Autobiographies
March 19 1:1 Demonstration Story (Second ½ of class)
(Expressive)
Make up for
Receptive Test
March 24 Final Multiple Choice Exam
Final
Expressive Demonstration: You can find the basic outline of what
you will be signing on page 90 in your Signing Naturally textbook. In class
appointments will be set up in advance of for you to provide me a 1:1 sample of
somewhere between 1:20-1:30 minutes of what you’ve learned. Class will be
staggered in appointment slots.
March
24th
Multiple Choice Exam: Objective exam will
focus on basic identification of items associated with the Culture of Deafness.
Some will be found from Wikipedia, internet sources, my .ppt
lesson and/or the Signing Naturally workbook. Additional information to follow,
including a guide to help you review pertinent information
Unit
Assignments: There’s no need to struggle through these
alone…introduce yourself and find someone with a similar schedule…you can both
work on the assignments together, BUT each hands in their own work, self-correcting
with a different colored pencil/pen. No work can be submitted electronically.
Receptive
Quizzes: Quizzes are averaged out. I do not offer
‘make-up’ on quizzes. There will however, be one make-up receptive exam on
March 19th, 2014. You will be able to track your academic
progress on www.engrade.com