ERIC Number: EJ1143479
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2017-Apr
Pages: 14
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1081-4159
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Generation of Signs within Semantic and Phonological Categories: Data from Deaf Adults and Children Who Use American Sign Language
Beal-Alvarez, Jennifer S.; Figueroa, Daileen M.
Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education, v22 n2 p219-232 Apr 2017
Two key areas of language development include semantic and phonological knowledge. Semantic knowledge relates to word and concept knowledge. Phonological knowledge relates to how language parameters combine to create meaning. We investigated signing deaf adults' and children's semantic and phonological sign generation via one-minute tasks, including animals, foods, and specific handshapes. We investigated the effects of chronological age, age of sign language acquisition/years at school site, gender, presence of a disability, and geographical location (i.e., USA and Puerto Rico) on participants' performance and relations among tasks. In general, the phonological task appeared more difficult than the semantic tasks, students generated more animals than foods, age, and semantic performance correlated for the larger sample of U.S. students, and geographical variation included use of fingerspelling and specific signs. Compared to their peers, deaf students with disabilities generated fewer semantic items. These results provide an initial snapshot of students' semantic and phonological sign generation.
Descriptors: Semantics, Language Acquisition, Phonological Awareness, Adults, Children, Age Differences, Gender Differences, Disabilities, Geographic Location, Difficulty Level, American Sign Language, Deafness
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: United States; Puerto Rico
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Author Affiliations: N/A