Sign Language Assessment

Background Deafness has an adverse impact on children's ability to acquire spoken languages. Signed languages offer a more accessible input for deaf children, but because the vast majority are born to hearing parents who do not sign, their early exposure to sign language is limited. Deaf children as a whole are therefore at high risk of language delays. Aims We compared deaf and hearing children's performance on a semantic fluency task. Optimal performance on this task requires a systematic search of the mental lexicon, the retrieval of words within a subcategory and, when that subcategory is exhausted, switching to a new subcategory. We compared retrieval patterns between groups, and also compared the responses of deaf children who used British Sign Language (BSL) with those who used spoken English. We investigated how semantic fluency performance related to children's expressive vocabulary and executive function skills, and also retested semantic fluency in the majorit...

In this paper we discuss two distinct, although related questions. The first question is what explains the well-known fact that short-term memory (span) is lower for signs than for words. We review some explanations that have been proposed for this fact at the light of the results of a novel experiment involving gating of signs. The second question is how signers can process fully-fledged grammatical systems like sign languages even if they rely on a limited short-term memory. In order to deal with this issue, we discuss the distribution in sign languages of the configuration that is most challenging for short-term memory, namely center embedding. The conclusion is that center embedding is possible only if special strategies based on the use of space are used that are likely to reduce the short-term memory burden.

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The goal of a recently concluded project in Switzerland was to pioneer an assessment system for lexical signs of Swiss German Sign Language (Deutschschweizerische Gebärdensprache, DSGS) that relies on automatic sign language recognition. The assessment system gives adult L2 learners of DSGS feedback on the correctness of the manual parameters of signing (handshape, hand position, location, and movement) of isolated signs they produce. In its initial version, the system includes automatic feedback for a subset of a DSGS vocabulary size production test consisting of approximately 100 lexical items at CEFR level A1. The paper at hand reports on the process of selecting the items for the test, compiling training data for the SLR system, and linguistically analyzing errors in the resulting video recordings.

Sign languages present particular challenges to language assessors in relation to variation in signs, weakly defined citation forms, and a general lack of standard-setting work even in long-established measures of productive sign proficiency. The present article addresses and explores these issues via a mixed-methods study of a human-rated form-recall sign vocabulary test of 98 signs for beginning adult learners of Swiss German Sign Language (DSGS), using post-test qualitative rater interviews to inform interpretation of the results of quantitative analysis of the test ratings using many-facets Rasch measurement. Significant differences between two expert raters were observed on three signs. The follow-up interview revealed disagreement on the criterion of correctness, despite the raters’ involvement in the development of the base lexicon of signs. The findings highlight the challenges of using human ratings to assess the production not only of sign language vocabulary, but of minor...

Sign language recognition (SLR) involves identifying the form and meaning of isolated signs or sequences of signs. To our knowledge, the combination of SLR and sign language assessment is novel. The goal of an ongoing three-year project in Switzerland is to pioneer an assessment system for lexical signs of Swiss German Sign Language (Deutschschweizerische Gebärdensprache, DSGS) that relies on SLR. The assessment system aims to give adult L2 learners of DSGS feedback on the correctness of the manual parameters (handshape, hand position, location, and movement) of isolated signs they produce. In its initial version, the system will include automatic feedback for a subset of a DSGS vocabulary production test consisting of 100 lexical items. To provide the SLR component of the assessment system with sufficient training samples, a large-scale dataset containing videotaped repeated productions of the 100 items of the vocabulary test with associated transcriptions and annotations was created, consisting of data from 11 adult L1 signers and 19 adult L2 learners of DSGS. This paper introduces the dataset, which will be made available to the research community.

In German Switzerland the learning and assessment of Swiss German Sign Language (Deutschschweizerische Gebärdensprache, DSGS) takes place in different contexts, for example, in tertiary education or in continuous education courses. By way of the still ongoing implementation of the Common European Framework of Reference for DSGS, different tests and assessment procedures are currently been developed and their potential are explored to support the learning and assessment of DSGS. Examples of this are two vocabulary size tests. The first is a web-delivered Yes/No Test, the second a Translation Test from written German to DSGS. For both tests, the same set of items was used. The items were sampled from DSGS teaching materials. For the development of the two vocabulary size tests, 20 DSGS adult learners of ages 24 to 55 (M = 39.3) were recruited as test takers. An item analysis of the test results yielded candidates for removal from the item set. Cronbach’s Alpha showed good results f...

2012CS/MIS class) to give our best. I thank Dr. G. Ayorkor Korsah, for giving me the DeSIGN research paper which actually served as my first full text resource and launched me on the path to other research papers' findings and personal communications that helped me complete this project. I also thank Dr. Astrid Twenebowa Larssen, my gorgeous, encouraging and attention-todetail supervisor and mentor, for coaching me throughout the whole process of writing this thesis. Her feedback and comments made a BIG difference. I would like to acknowledge the support and encouragement of the Osei family, Bless

Sign language recognition (SLR) involves identifying the form and meaning of isolated signs or sequences of signs. To our knowledge, the combination of SLR and sign language assessment is novel. The goal of an ongoing three-year project in Switzerland is to pioneer an assessment system for lexical signs of Swiss German Sign Language (Deutschschweizerische Gebärdensprache, DSGS) that relies on SLR. The assessment system aims to give adult L2 learners of DSGS feedback on the correctness of the manual parameters (handshape, hand position, location, and movement) of isolated signs they produce. In its initial version, the system will include automatic feedback for a subset of a DSGS vocabulary production test consisting of 100 lexical items. To provide the SLR component of the assessment system with sufficient training samples, a large-scale dataset containing videotaped repeated productions of the 100 items of the vocabulary test with associated transcriptions and annotations was created, consisting of data from 11 adult L1 signers and 19 adult L2 learners of DSGS. This paper introduces the dataset, which will be made available to the research community.

Signed languages continue to be a key element of deaf education programs that incorporate a bilingual approach to teaching and learning. In order to monitor the success of bilingual deaf education programs, and in particular to monitor the progress of children acquiring signed language, it is essential to develop an assessment tool of signed language skills. Although researchers have developed some checklists and experimental tests related to American Sign Language (ASL) assessment, at this time a standardized measure of ASL does not exist. There have been tests developed in other signed languages, for example, British Sign Language, that can serve as models in this area. The purpose of this study was to adapt the Assessing British Sign Language Development: Receptive Skills Test for use in ASL in order to begin the process of developing a standardized measure of ASL skills. The results suggest that collaboration between researchers in different signed languages can provide a valuable contribution toward filling the gap in the area of signed language assessment.

Previous research has pointed at naturalness and communicative efficiency as possible constraints on language structure. Here, we investigated adjective position in American Sign Language (ASL), a language with relatively flexible word order, to test the incremental efficiency hypothesis, according to which both speakers and signers try to produce efficient referential expressions that are sensitive to the word order of their languages. The results of three experiments using a standard referential communication task confirmed that deaf ASL signers tend to produce absolute adjectives, such as color or material, in prenominal position, while scalar adjectives tend to be produced in prenominal position when expressed as lexical signs, but in postnominal position when expressed as classifiers. Age of ASL exposure also had an effect on referential choice, with early-exposed signers producing more classifiers than late-exposed signers. Overall, our results suggest that linguistic, pragmat...

The goal of a recently concluded project in Switzerland was to pioneer an assessment system for lexical signs of Swiss German Sign Language (Deutschschweizerische Gebärdensprache, DSGS) that relies on automatic sign language recognition. The assessment system gives adult L2 learners of DSGS feedback on the correctness of the manual parameters of signing (handshape, hand position, location, and movement) of isolated signs they produce. In its initial version, the system includes automatic feedback for a subset of a DSGS vocabulary size production test consisting of approximately 100 lexical items at CEFR level A1. The paper at hand reports on the process of selecting the items for the test, compiling training data for the SLR system, and linguistically analyzing errors in the resulting video recordings.

In German Switzerland the learning and assessment of Swiss German Sign Language (Deutschschweizerische Gebärdensprache, DSGS) takes place in different contexts, for example, in tertiary education or in continuous education courses. By way of the still ongoing implementation of the Common European Framework of Reference for DSGS, different tests and assessment procedures are currently been developed and their potential are explored to support the learning and assessment of DSGS. Examples of this are two vocabulary size tests. The first is a web-delivered Yes/No Test, the second a Translation Test from written German to DSGS. For both tests, the same set of items was used. The items were sampled from DSGS teaching materials. For the development of the two vocabulary size tests, 20 DSGS adult learners of ages 24 to 55 (M = 39.3) were recruited as test takers. An item analysis of the test results yielded candidates for removal from the item set. Cronbach’s Alpha showed good results f...

Sign language recognition (SLR) involves identifying the form and meaning of isolated signs or sequences of signs. To our knowledge, the combination of SLR and sign language assessment is novel. The goal of an ongoing three-year project in Switzerland is to pioneer an assessment system for lexical signs of Swiss German Sign Language (Deutschschweizerische Gebärdensprache, DSGS) that relies on SLR. The assessment system aims to give adult L2 learners of DSGS feedback on the correctness of the manual parameters (handshape, hand position, location, and movement) of isolated signs they produce. In its initial version, the system will include automatic feedback for a subset of a DSGS vocabulary production test consisting of 100 lexical items. To provide the SLR component of the assessment system with sufficient training samples, a large-scale dataset containing videotaped repeated productions of the 100 items of the vocabulary test with associated transcriptions and annotations was created, consisting of data from 11 adult L1 signers and 19 adult L2 learners of DSGS. This paper introduces the dataset, which will be made available to the research community.

Die projizierte Klimaanderung fur die Metropolregion Hamburg (MRH) fuhrt vermehrt zu sommerlichen Trockenperioden. Besonders im Sudosten der Region wird dadurch die Wasserverfugbarkeit als limitierender Produktionsfaktor in der Landwirtschaft weiter begrenzt. Eine Abnahme der Grundwasserneubildung und zugleich zunehmender Wasserbedarf der Pflanzen erfordert eine Anpassung der Bewasserungsmethoden und Landbewirtschaftung. Dazu untersuchen Projekte innerhalb des KLIMZUG-NORD Themenfelds T3 „Zukunftsfahige Kulturlandschaften“ die Auswirkungen des Klimawandels auf die Verfugbarkeit und Qualitat des Wassers und entwickeln entsprechende Anpassungsmasnahmen der Landwirtschaft bei gleichzeitiger Berucksichtigung der Anspruche des Naturschutzes. Es wurden Kooperationen zwischen Akteuren aus Forschung, Planung, Wasser- und Landwirtschaft gebildet und vertieft; im Folgenden sind Ausschnitte der interdisziplinaren Zusammenarbeit in den Modellregionen Luneburger Heide und Biospharenreservat Nied...

This work presents a generic approach to tackle continuous Sign Language Recognition (SLR) in ordinary RGB Sign Language videos. While usual SLR systems only analyze SL through the lexical level, it is shown here that both lexical and SL-specific features can be accurately detected and localized. This paves the way to better understanding Sign Language linguistics, as well as benefiting the Deaf community in need of SL-specific tools like video querying. Generic human motion features are first extracted from videos, so that a very compact modeling is obtained and future training time is limited. A Recurrent Neural Network is then trained on those generic features to recognize lexicon and SL-specific structures like pointing. Applied to the French Sign Language corpus Dicta-Sign, pointing signs detection gets a 78% sequence-wise F 1-score on 4 seconds chunks. The network also gets a 70% sequence-wise F 1-score for the detection of lexical signs with less than 50 instances in the training set. These are very promising results for a first SLR trial on a French Sign Language corpus, given its relatively short total duration, its low image resolution and frame rate, and the unconstrained nature of the recorded dialogs.

. This Research Project Summary presents ongoing work on automatic Sign Language Recognition (SLR) and detection, carried out as a PhD research project at the LIMSI, CNRS, France. This work tackles the issue of extracting relevant information from a Sign Language (SL) video, and developing systems to detect lexical signs or even high-level linguistic features. It will benefit the Deaf community, because it can help indexing or searching through SL videos, as well as querying lexical signs databases.

This work presents a generic approach to tackle continuous Sign Language Recognition (SLR) in ordinary RGB Sign Language videos. While usual SLR systems only analyze SL through the lexical level, it is shown here that both lexical and SL-specific features can be accurately detected and localized. This paves the way to better understanding Sign Language linguistics, as well as benefiting the Deaf community in need of SL-specific tools like video querying. Generic human motion features are first extracted from videos, so that a very compact modeling is obtained and future training time is limited. A Recurrent Neural Network is then trained on those generic features to recognize lexicon and SL-specific structures like pointing. Applied to the French Sign Language corpus Dicta-Sign, pointing signs detection gets a 78% sequence-wise F1-score on 4 seconds chunks. The network also gets a 70% sequence-wise F1-score for the detection of lexical signs with less than 50 instances in the traini...

Although automated spoken language assessment is rapidly growing, such systems have not been widely developed for signed languages. This study provides validity evidence for an automated web application that was developed to assess and give feedback on handshape and hand movement of L2 learners' Swiss German Sign Language signs. The study shows good machine-internal and human-machine agreement through many-facet Rasch analysis. Learner perceptions examined through questionnaire responses indicate that the automated system occasionally generated ratings which impacted the quality of feedback at the level of individual signs for individual learners. Implications are discussed from a learning-oriented assessment perspective.

Despite this, there is a framework that can be drawn on: the CoE's Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) (Council of Europe, 2001) offers a starting point for considering greater harmonization of teaching and assessment practices in sign language programs (Leeson, 2011). Application of CEFR can also serve as a step toward formalizing the instruction and assessment of sign language proficiency in Europe. The ProSign project (2012-15), funded by the EMCL, marks an historic step towards the identification and ratification of standardized proficiency levels for sign languages across Europe. The CEFR is the standard framework for the teaching, learning and assessment of a spoken language as foreign/second language in Europe (Council of Europe, 2001). By considering the CEFR descriptors vis-à-vis sign languages, the opportunity arises for creating greater awareness around what is taught and why, at what levels and for what purposes, across sign language programs in Europe. CEFR also offers a framework for sign language teachers, something that has not been readily available in the past. Given these issues, the ProSign project has paved the way for development of curriculum and assessment materials.

Plurality in signed languages may be expressed in several ways –including the insertion of a numeral or quantifier within a construction, by the reduplication of a sign, or the incorporation of a plural classifier (Fischer, 1973; Baker-Shenk & Cokely, 1980; Hoffmeister, 1984; and Pfau & Steinbach, 2006). Examining plurality, there are differences when we compare classifiers in a signed language to those classifiers that occur in spoken languages. Aside from the obvious difference in modality (spoken vs. signed), one of the most notable differences is the fact that while many spoken languages employ numeral classifiers to express plurality, signed languages express plurality through the use of “classificatory verbs of handling, motion and location” (Aikenvald, 2003; p.15). These verbs of handling, motion and location differ from numeral classifiers of spoken languages not only in their form but also in the fact that they may optionally occur with a numeral. This is in contrast to spo...

To All Vocabulary SIG Members, We are proud to present you with volume 1 issue 2 of the Vocabulary Education & Research Bulletin. If you recall back to the inaugural issue published earlier this year, we summarized many of the posters that were presented at the first JALT Vocabulary SIG colloquium in Fukuoka, Japan. The colloquium took place in March, 2012 when the SIG was just getting off the ground. We may be a young SIG, but we are clearly a popular one. The JALT Vocabulary SIG will celebrate its first birthday this November, and we have seen steady growth of membership as the months go by. The SIG started with 26 members last November after the JALT National conference, and less than a year later, as of September 1st, 2012, we stand at 101 members! Not bad for being the new kids on the block. In this issue, we have a variety of interesting articles that should keep you satisfied until the next issue. Phil Bennet & Tim Stoeckel start us off by analyzing a multiple-choice test in terms of willingness to skip items. Tadamitsu Kamimoto is next and investigates the effects of using stems (i.e., a short, non-defining sentence) on the Vocabulary Size Test. Following Tadamitsu, Masaya Kaneko explores the Center Test to discover what vocabulary size is needed for a 95% comprehension rate. After that, Kris Ramonda discusses Nation's four strands of vocabulary learning, and how to incorporate research and practice by using teacher belief information. Next, Raymond Stubbe searches for a boundary of acceptability of false alarms in yes/no tests (i.e., endorsing a word, when the word is not a real word). Last but not least, Yuka Yamamoto explores the notion that initial vocabulary level doesn't influence target vocabulary acquisition. After the main course, for your vocabulary dessert, the SIG News section has up-to-date information including news on the SIG Symposium that is scheduled for June 2013 (call for poster presentations will be open until January 31st, so please submit to share your research and make the symposium even more successful!), a report by Mark Howarth on the miniconference which took place in May, and information about the SIG poster session and annual general meeting, both of which are taking place at the JALT annual conference. Finally, we would like to thank all of the contributors for their hard work and cooperation, as well as the anonymous reviewers for their time and effort. It is because of all of you that VERB is possible.

Unlike many grammatical nonmanual markings, nonmanual adverbials do not have communicative counterparts (Anderson & Reilly, 1998). This grammatical category therefore allows us to examine how children develop their linguistic facial behaviors. Unfortunately, only few studies on the acquisition of nonmanual adverbials, largely on ASL, have been conducted (cf. Anderson & Reilly, 1998; Reilly & Anderson, 2002; Reilly 2006). These studies show that deaf children of deaf parents acquiring ASL as their native language master manual adverbs earlier than nonmanual adverbials which share the same meaning with the manual one. Nonmanual adverbials emerge at around age 2;0. By age 3;6, nonmanual adverbials become more productive. 33 deaf children in the Jockey Club Sign Bilingualism and Co-enrolment in Deaf Education Programme (JC-SLCO), aged from 5 to 13, participated in the current study. They were divided into 6 cohorts in accordance with their years of enrollment in the JC-SLCO program. All of them were exposed to both Hong Kong Sign Language (HKSL) and Cantonese at school. Most of them were late learners of HKSL. The production and comprehension data were collected by means of a video/animation description and a video-signing matching task, respectively. Generally speaking, these deaf children performed better in comprehension than in production. They are not sensitive

A key challenge when learning language in naturalistic circumstances is to extract linguistic information from a continuous stream of speech. This study investigates the predictors of such implicit learning amongst adults exposed to a new language in a new modality. Sign-naïve participants (N=93; British-English speakers) were shown a 4-minute weather forecast in Swedish Sign Language. Subsequently, we tested their ability to recognise 22 target sign forms. The target items differed in their occurrence frequency in the forecast, and in their degree of iconicity. The results revealed that both frequency and iconicity facilitated recognition cumulatively. The adult mechanism for language learning thus operates similarly on sign and spoken languages as regards frequency, but also exploits modality-salient properties, e.g., iconicity for sign languages. Individual differences in cognitive skills did not predict recognition. The properties of the input thus influenced adults’ language le...

The focus of tests today oftentimes centers on ways to provide good quality tests to test takers in a cost-effective manner. Test sponsors are concerned about the policy issues related to test use; test developers must prepare a test that meets both the purpose and specifications articulated by the test sponsor and the technical standards for quality tests. Test administrators are responsible for test delivery in ways that protect the integrity of the test scores and the security of the test product. Test takers often have limited options in when, how, or why they are taking the test, and may feel victimized in the process. The purpose of this paper is to focus on the test taker and to consider how all parties in the test process (test sponsor, test developer, test administrator, and test taker) have a role to play in ensuring fair testing practices and valid test results.

The current study contributes empirical data to our understanding of how knowledge of American Sign Language (ASL) syntax aids reading print English for deaf children who are bilingual and bimodal in ASL and English print. The first analysis, a conceptual replication of Hoffmeister (2000), showed that performance on the American Sign Language Assessment Instrument correlated with the Sanford Achievement Test-Reading Comprehension (SAT-RC) and the Rhode Island Test of Language Structures (RITLS, Engen & Engen, 1983). The second analysis was a quantile regression using ASL assessments to predict English print abilities. Different ASL skills were important for English reading comprehension (SAT-RC) versus understanding English syntax (RITLS); the relationship between ASL skills and English print performance also varied for students at different English print ability levels. Strikingly, knowledge of ASL syntax was robustly correlated with knowledge of English syntax at all ability levels. Our findings provide novel and strong evidence for the impact of ASL on the development of English literacy.

Among the existing sign language assessment tools, only a small number can be used in clinical settings. This contribution aims at presenting three comprehension assessment tests (two lexical and one syntactic) that offer a solid basis to build tools to assess language impairments in deaf signing adults. We provide the material and guidelines, based on psychometric analyses of the items, to make these tests suitable for clinical assessment. They are available for French Sign Language and Italian Sign Language. So far, the three tests were administered to three groups of deaf participants based on age of exposure (AoE) to sign language: native (AoE from birth), early (AoE = from 1 to 5 years), and late (AoE = from 6 to 15 years) signers. The results showed that the three tests are easy for the typical deaf signing population, and therefore, they can be adapted into tests that assess a deaf signing population with language impairments. Moreover, the results of the syntactic test revea...

The current study contributes empirical data to our understanding of how knowledge of American Sign Language (ASL) syntax aids reading print English for deaf children who are bilingual and bimodal in ASL and English print. The first analysis, a conceptual replication of Hoffmeister (2000), showed that performance on the American Sign Language Assessment Instrument correlated with the Sanford Achievement Test-Reading Comprehension (SAT-RC) and the Rhode Island Test of Language Structures (RITLS, Engen & Engen, 1983). The second analysis was a quantile regression using ASL assessments to predict English print abilities. Different ASL skills were important for English reading comprehension (SAT-RC) versus understanding English syntax (RITLS); the relationship between ASL skills and English print performance also varied for students at different English print ability levels. Strikingly, knowledge of ASL syntax was robustly correlated with knowledge of English syntax at all ability levels. Our findings provide novel and strong evidence for the impact of ASL on the development of English literacy.

This study analyzes the routes of lexical relations in Spanish-speaking older adults, using a free word association task. It focuses on differences in reaction times according to the type of lexical relation and the influence of the semantic category of stimulus words.

Sign-language assignment has been an issue for 15 years. Several tools in different sign languages have been created, and each of them has a specific goal : assessment of sign language as a first language, sign language as a L2, lexical development, cognitive abilities, etc. (Haug, 2008. http://www.signlang-assessment.info). Actually, there is no available test, which assesses LSF. As a consequence, researchers, teachers and therapists have not reliable benchmarks about LSF acquisition, and doesn’t know how assess linguistic skills in an efficient way. So, in the wake of Courtin’s work on LSF assessment (2010), and other sign-language assessment tools, our general goal is to develop a series of tests to assess linguistic abilities in LSF. Among the numerous tasks, which allow us to evaluate language skills, Sentence Repetition Task (SRT) seems relevant to sign languages. Often used in Vocal Languages (VL), SRT enables to obtain a good representation of language abilities while being...

In the interpreting profession, the term language direction (or directionality) is used to describe interpreting from one’s native, dominant language (L1) into a second, non-dominant language (L2), or vice versa. Language direction has long been of interest to interpreting scholars in regards to the quality of the output. Spoken language interpreter educators have argued that high quality interpretations can only be produced when working from an L2 into an L1 (Nicodemus & Emmorey, 2013; Seleskovitch, 1978). Further, spoken language interpreters have reported a preference for working from their L2 into their L1 (Donovan, 2004). In contrast, signed language interpreters, particularly novices, report the opposite preference for language direction, that is, the majority indicate a preference to work from their L1 into their L2 (Nicodemus & Emmorey, 2013). Researchers have speculated about the factors underlying this direction asymmetry found between signed and spoken language interprete...

Among the existing sign language assessment tools, only a small number can be used in clinical settings. This contribution aims at presenting three comprehension assessment tests (two lexical and one syntactic) that offer a solid basis to build tools to assess language impairments in deaf signing adults. We provide the material and guidelines, based on psychometric analyses of the items, to make these tests suitable for clinical assessment. They are available for French Sign Language and Italian Sign Language. So far, the three tests were administered to three groups of deaf participants based on age of exposure (AoE) to sign language: native (AoE from birth), early (AoE = from 1 to 5 years), and late (AoE = from 6 to 15 years) signers. The results showed that the three tests are easy for the typical deaf signing population, and therefore, they can be adapted into tests that assess a deaf signing population with language impairments. Moreover, the results of the syntactic test reveal a categorial difference between native and non-native signers and therefore show the need for baselines that mirror the effect of AoE to sign language when assessing language competence, in particular in clinical assessment.

This article presents the adaptation of the MacArthur Communicative Development Inventory (CDI; Fenson et al., 1993, 1994) to Spanish Sign Language (LSE). Data were collected from 55 participants (32 boys and 23 girls; 17 deaf signers, 38 hearing signers) who, evaluated by their caregivers every four months, presented a total of 170 records. The parents reported the signs that the children could understand or produce between 8-36 months. Results suggested that the CDI adapted to the LSE is a valid and reliable instrument. Signing children could understand more signs than they produced at this early developmental stage. There were no significant differences between boys and girls, or between deaf and hearing children. The development of the LSE is similar to that of other sign languages, although with a lower production of signs in the early stages, perhaps due to the bilingualism of most of the children of our study. A Spanish Sign Language (LSE) adaptation of the Communicative Development Inventories Spanish Sign Language (LSE) is the language used by the deaf community in Spain (with the exception of Catalonia, which has its own sign language). Like the other sign languages of the world, it is a system of regulated and visual-gestural communication that uses sight for the reception of the message, and movements, space, and facial and corporal expression for its production. However, studies devoted to the

Purveying insights from a mixed-method research design, this study aims to enlighten the exploitation of the European guidelines in language testing and assessment practices in non-formal educational settings. Accordingly, three non-formal English language schools renowned for quality in Turkey were taken to indepth analysis in order to offer a general paradigm from a sample of leading professionals on the utilization of the European benchmarks in language testing and assessment practices. The results have yielded that (1) there is a need for a more practical curriculum molded with a real auditing system for the enhancement of the current language testing and assessment practices; (2) there is a request for the validation process for language certificate examinations implemented in non-formal educational settings; (3) there is a demand for cooperation amidst the allies for the standardization process in language testing and assessment practices. The results are laced with some recommendations and implications for language testing and assessment.

This article defines the origin of an internet-centered language assessment (ICLA), how ICLAs are different from the other traditional computer-oriented tests, and what uses and functions ICLAs have in different taxonomies of language testing. After a very short review of computer-oriented testing, ICLAs are defined and categorized in low-tech or high tech categories. Since low-tech tests are the more feasible and practical, they will be mainly focused in this article. Then, item types of low-tech ICLAs are described, and validation concerns that are specific to ICLAs are discussed. Afterwards, the general advantages as well as design and implementation issues of ICLAs are considered before examining the role that testing consequences play in deciding whether a ICLA is an appropriate assessment instrument or not. It is argued that ICLAs are among the most appropriate functions in low-stakes testing situations; but with proper supervision, they can also be used in medium-stakes situations although they are not generally recommended for high-stakes situations.

Deaf people across Europe struggle to have equal access to written information as the main language of instruction in school is the spoken language. The "Deaf Learning" project (2015-1-PL01-KA204-016) aims at improving the above-mentioned situation by developing a face-to-face course supported by a Moodle course according to the needs of young deaf adults. Within the project, the partners developed a framework for lessons ranging from A1 to B2 (on the basis of the Common European Framework for Languages, CEFR) to improve reading and writing skills in the respective national languages. The teaching materials for level A1 consist of 30 lessons in pdf printable version, and 6 Moodle lessons. To make the course suitable for the very heterogeneous group of deaf learners, the structure of the lessons was designed so that teachers can adapt it to the needs of the deaf students. The Moodle lessons are kept simple and visual; they include sign language videos, images, and H5P interactive contents. The teaching materials have been tested in Italy for the main target group (17 participants aged 16-25 years) and in Austria for all other interested parties (3 participants aged over 30 years) through face-to-face lessons. The participants' feedback was incorporated into the materials.

In the city of Sao Paulo, Barbosa worked with two curriculum proposals: for Portuguese as an L2 (in its written form) and for the Brazilian Sign Language (Libras) as an L1. Mertzani and Fernandes, down in the South, in the city of Rio Grande, commenced the Libras curriculum with the close participation of the city's bilingual school for the deaf. This latter, had its base on the national Greek Sign Language curriculum (2004), which, in turn, was founded on the American Sign Language (ASL) curricula and programs of the 1990s (MERTZANI, 2019). The publication of these curricula presented Libras as a compulsory component in the national curriculum, in the area of Languages, and hence, as a mandatory unit to be studied on its own right throughout the school grades. Working towards the same scope, we joined our expertise and experience, organized seminars and workshops to open discussions concerning the teaching and learning of Sign Languages as the L1 at schools and their position in the national curriculum (to mention a few:

In the interpreting profession, the term language direction (or directionality) is used to describe interpreting from one’s native, dominant language (L1) into a second, non-dominant language (L2), or vice versa. Language direction has long been of interest to interpreting scholars in regards to the quality of the output. Spoken language interpreter educators have argued that high quality interpretations can only be produced when working from an L2 into an L1 (Nicodemus & Emmorey, 2013; Seleskovitch, 1978). Further, spoken language interpreters have reported a preference for working from their L2 into their L1 (Donovan, 2004). In contrast, signed language interpreters, particularly novices, report the opposite preference for language direction, that is, the majority indicate a preference to work from their L1 into their L2 (Nicodemus & Emmorey, 2013). Researchers have speculated about the factors underlying this direction asymmetry found between signed and spoken language interprete...

SIGN-HUB is a European project involving collaborators from seven countries funded within the Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation program. The scope of the project is both socio-cultural and linguistic, as its aim is to document and preserve the culture, the history, and the languages of European Deaf communities. After a brief description of the various components of the project, we focus on the documentation of the life stories of Deaf people and the creation of a digital sign language archive.

There is a growing interest in sign language assessments documented by the increase in the number of tests developed over the last decade and also by the literature that is now available on this topic. In this chapter we give an overview of tests for assessing deaf children's signed language skills and discuss challenges related to developing these test as well as to evaluating them in terms of reliability and validity. In addition, we share some experiences on how sign language assessments are used by practitioners. References and links are provided to guide future teachers, researchers, and/or policymakers in their search for further information.

Despite this, there is a framework that can be drawn on: the CoE's Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) (Council of Europe, 2001) offers a starting point for considering greater harmonization of teaching and assessment practices in sign language programs (Leeson, 2011). Application of CEFR can also serve as a step toward formalizing the instruction and assessment of sign language proficiency in Europe. The ProSign project (2012-15), funded by the EMCL, marks an historic step towards the identification and ratification of standardized proficiency levels for sign languages across Europe. The CEFR is the standard framework for the teaching, learning and assessment of a spoken language as foreign/second language in Europe (Council of Europe, 2001). By considering the CEFR descriptors vis-à-vis sign languages, the opportunity arises for creating greater awareness around what is taught and why, at what levels and for what purposes, across sign language programs in Europe. CEFR also offers a framework for sign language teachers, something that has not been readily available in the past. Given these issues, the ProSign project has paved the way for development of curriculum and assessment materials.

This study reports on the use of an open-source software for sign language learning and (self-)assessment. A Yes/No vocabulary size test for Swiss German Sign Language (Deutschschweizerische Gebärdensprache, DSGS) was developed, targeting beginning adult learners. The Web-based test, which can be used for self-assessment or placement purposes, was administered to 20 DSGS adult learners of ages 24 to 55 (M = 39.3). The learners filled out a background questionnaire, took the Yes/No test tests, and filled out a feedback questionnaire. The comments provided by the learners about the suitability of the Web-based DSGS vocabulary self-assessment instrument provided concrete feedback towards improvement of the system.

This paper presents the features of an online test framework for a receptive skills test that has been adapted, based on a British template, into different sign languages. The online test includes features that meet the needs of the different sign language versions. Features such as usability of the test, automatic saving of scores and score reporting have been implemented. The background information of the children and the test results are saved in a secure databank. When consent has been granted, these data can be used for cross-linguistic research in the future. This will not only help us to broaden our understanding of deaf children's sign language development, but will also help us to further improve sign language testing. Furthermore, implications for research and practice will be discussed.