BSL and Deaf Awareness Training
Deaf Awareness
BSL and D/deaf Awareness Training Providers
Useful Links
British Sign Language
- British Sign Language or BSL is the preferred language of approximately 70,000 Deaf people in the UK. It is the 5th language to be recognised as an official language of the UK, along with English, Welsh, Irish Gaelic and Scottish Gaelic.
- It is possible to learn BSL at a number of centres in Scotland, where students can gain qualifications that are accredited by an organisation called the Council for the Advancement of Communication with Deaf People (CACDP). CACDP offers qualifications at Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3. CACDP also offer a range of courses on the topic of d/Deaf awareness.
- The Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) also accredits BSL courses at Levels 1, 2 and 3. These SQA courses are currently not as widely available as the CACDP qualifications.
- Further Education (FE) students who are BSL users usually require the services of a communication support worker (CSW) or sign-language interpreter who will translate lectures and tutorials from English into BSL and translate student responses from BSL into English. The process of interpreting BSL into spoken English is called “voiceover”.
- FE students working towards an HNC, HND or degree qualification require the services of a sign language interpreter or highly qualified CSW who holds, at least, a CACDP Level 3 qualification in BSL or equivalent.
- As BSL cannot be written down easily it is worth considering the possibility of allowing the student to use video resources to record lectures. Many Deaf BSL users may not find written English accessible and video resources may be an important consideration required to support some d/Deaf students.
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Deaf Awareness
- This is a term used to refer to a number of training courses that cover information such as communication tactics, interacting with deaf people and Deaf culture.
- They also provide information that can help hearing people understand about the wide variety of needs that deaf students may have.
- It is important to understand and be aware of these differences as students who are deafened may have very different profiles of need from students who are profoundly deaf.
- It is essential that CSWs undergo training in this area.
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BSL and Deaf Awareness Training Providers:
CACDP provide a list of organisations providing accredited training in BSL. The CACDP website can be a helpful starting point for trying to locate a course but their list is not exhaustive.
Colin McLeod, Deaf Action.
Phone – 0131 556 3128
Fax – 0131 557 8283
E-mail – cmcleod@deafaction.org
Deaf Action is based in Edinburgh and in West Lothian and runs a number of BSL courses at levels 1 and 2.
Fiona Crawford, Deaf Studies Co-ordinator, Deaf Connections
Phone / Text – 0141 420 2821
E-mail – fiona@deafconnections.co.uk
Deaf Connections is based in Glasgow and runs a number of BSL courses at levels 1 and 2.
Marion Fletcher, Donaldson’s College
Phone – 0131 337 9911
Fax – 0131 337 1654
E-mail – mfletcher@donaldsons-coll.edin.sch.uk
Donaldson’s College is Scotland’s national school for Deaf pupils and offers a limited a range of BSL courses throughout the academic year at levels 1, 2 and 3.
Department of Management & Languages, Heriot Watt University
Phone - 0131 449 5111
Fax – 0131 449 5153
E-mail – enquiries@sml.hw.ac.uk
Heriot Watt University’s department of Management and Languages offers training for students wishing to become sign language interpreters as well as occasional intensive week long courses.
Central Scotland:
Mrs Anne Dick
Alva Academy
Phone – 01259 760 342
Fax – 01259 769 162
E-mail – adick@edu.clacks.gov.uk
Grampian:
Mary Whittaker
Deaf Havoc!
Elgin
Phone – 01343 842 304
Fax – 01343 843 202
E-mail – mary.whittaker@tiscali.co.uk
Mrs R S Burt
Aberdeen & NE Deaf Society
Aberdeen
Phone – 01224 494 566
Fax – 01224 483 894
E-mail – info@aneds.org.uk
Highlands & Islands:
Mrs Deirdre Aitken
Caithness Deaf Care
Wick
Phone – 01955 606 170
Fax – 01955 606 170
E-mail – deaf-care-wick@ukf.net
Jenny Lidell
Deaf Communication Project
Dingwall
Phone – 01349 865 418
Fax – 01349 864 438
E-mail – jenny.lidell@highland.gov.uk
Strathclyde:
Andy Irvine
Commtacs Training & Development
Blantyre
Phone – 01698 826 937
Fax – 07092 158 577
info@Commtacs.co.uk
George Lallaway
Clydebank College
Glasgow
Phone – 0141 952 7771
Fax – 0141 951 1574
E-mail – georgelallaway@clydebank.ac.uk
John Mumford
Langside College
Glasgow
Phone – 0141 272 3628
Fax – 0141 632 5252
E-mail – mumford@langside.ac.uk
Ereland Tulloch
RNID – Scotland
Glasgow
Phone – 0141 341 5347
Fax – 0141 341 5352
E-mail – ereland.tulloch@rnid.org.uk
Ms Linda van Herrden
Kilmarnock College
Phone – 01563 523 501
Fax – 01563 538 182
E-mail – lvheerden@kilmarnock.ac.uk
Ruth Gibson
James Watt College of Further & Higher Education
Greenock
Phone – 01475 553 108
Fax – 01475 888 079
E-mail – rgibson@jameswatt.ac.uk
Tayside:
Alana MacNab Trusty
Sound Sense Project
Dundee
Phone – 01382 431 510
Fax – 01382 431 510
E-mail – soundsense1@msn.com
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Useful links
http://www.deafsociety.org/ : Deaf Action
www.deafstation.org :Deafstation - an information resource and news service, all in BSL (Requires Quicktime)
http://www.donaldsons-coll.edin.sch.uk/ :Donaldson’s College
http://www.hw.ac.uk/ :Heriot Watt University
www.rnid.org.uk : RNID
www.signature.org.uk :CACDP has changed its name to Signature. Their website provides fact sheets and information about training courses available in subjects relating to deaf Awareness
Other websites with useful information about deaf Awareness are:
www.signstation.org Want to know about British Sign Language (BSL)? Signstation has video, interactive exercises, pictures, graphics and explanations about BSL and Deaf people at work. FE students who are BSL users usually require the services of a communication support worker (CSW) or sign-language interpreter who will translate lectures and tutorials from English into BSL and translate student responses from BSL into English.
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