Program Description

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    The American Sign Language (ASL) program at OHM BOCES offers students the opportunity to take up to four years of sequential instruction. More specficially:

    • Students in grade 8 are able to earn a high school course credit for their work in ASL 1 provided a passing score is earned for both a) the course as well as b) the annually created OHM BOCES Checkpoint A examination.
    • High school students will earn high school course credit for any ASL course provided a passing score is earned in the course. There is no examination requirement for course credit.
    • At the end of ASL 3, students will take the annually created (and 4+1 Pathways approved) OHM BOCES Checkpoint B examination in American Sign Langauge. Students who a) earn three credits in American Sign Langauge and b) who pass the Checkpoint B examination will have met the New York State Languages Other Than English (LOTE) requirement for a New York State diploma with advanced designation.  
    • Students who take ASL 3 and/or ASL 4 are eligible to earn three (3) tuition-free college credits for each full-year course taken from Herkimer College. 
    • In total, students who take American Sign Language from OHM BOCES can earn four (4) high school course credits and six (6) college credits by completing the four-year-sequence of courses.

    Current IVC instructors for American Sign Lanuage: 

    • Mrs. Erin Murray
    • Mrs. Jill Chmielewski
    • Mrs. Kelsey Charbonneau
    • Ms. Jordin Shepard
    • Ms. Amy Lapham

     

    ASL

     

     

Course Descriptions: American Sign Language 1-4

  • American Sign Language 1    
    1 High School Credit

    ASL 1 is the first of a series of four sequential courses that will teach students introductory level vocabulary, basic grammar structure, Deaf history, and the cultural background needed to communicate with Deaf individuals. Instruction will include the language functions, asking for and giving information, making requests, giving directions, agreeing and disagreeing, expressing likes and dislikes as well as many other skills required to communicate on a novice level. ASL 1 offers students a variety of experiences that will develop their awareness of the world around them. Likewise, the multimedia exposure students experience in this class will help them better understand the Deaf culture. As the course is derived from the New York State Learning Standards for Languages Other than English, this course satisfies the criteria required by New York State to earn the Languages other than English (LOTE) course credit.* The course is also aligned to the national proficiency guidelines published by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL).

    • Prerequisites: None
    • Grades: 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
    • Textbooks: weSIGN: ASL & Deaf Perspectives, For Hearing People Only, Signing Naturally
    • Final Exam: OHM BOCES Checkpoint A examination


    *Grade 8 students must pass both the course as well as the Checkpoint A examination to earn high school course credit. Students enrolled in high school only need to pass the course to earn credit.

    American Sign Language 2     
    1 High School Credit

    ASL 2 is the second of a series of four sequential courses that will teach students introductory level vocabulary, grammar structure, Deaf history, and the cultural background needed to communicate with Deaf individuals. Instruction will include the language functions, asking for and giving information, making requests, giving directions, agreeing and disagreeing, expressing likes and dislikes, introducing classifiers and facial expressions as important components of ASL grammar, as well as many other skills required to communicate on a novice-high level. ASL 2 offers students a variety of experiences that will increase their awareness of the world around them. Likewise, the multimedia exposure students experience in this class will help them better understand the Deaf culture. This course is derived from the New York State Learning Standards for Languages Other than English. The course is also aligned to the national proficiency guidelines published by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL).

    • Prerequisites: ASL 1
    • Grades: 9, 10, 11, 12
    • Textbooks: weSIGN: ASL & Deaf Perspectives, For Hearing People Only, Signing Naturally
    • Final Exam: teacher-created examination

    American Sign Language 3      
    1 High School Credit + 3 College Credits from Herkimer College (HU 100)

    ASL 3 is the third of a series of four sequential courses that will teach students introductory level vocabulary, grammar structure, Deaf history, and the cultural background needed to communicate with Deaf individuals. Students will learn how to use various types of classifiers with complex grammar structures, learn to narrate compound situations that occur in everyday life, use advanced grammar structures and sentence types, and gain the confidence to interact in the Deaf community. ASL 3 is largely project based and centers around the interests and curiosities of students through a series of personalized projects. This course is derived from the New York State Learning Standards for Languages Other than English. The course is also aligned to the national proficiency guidelines published by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL).

    • Prerequisites: ASL 1 and ASL 2
    • Grades: 10, 11, 12
    • Textbooks: weSIGN: ASL & Deaf Perspectives, For Hearing People Only, Signing Naturally
    • Final Exam: OHM BOCES Checkpoint B examination*

    *The OHM BOCES Checkpoint B examination is the only ASL Checkpoint B examination in New York State to be approved as a 4+1 Pathways to Graduation exam. Students who a) earn three course credits in ASL and b) who pass the Checkpoint B examination will have additional flexibility to meet exam requirements to earn a New York State diploma.

    American Sign Language 4     
    1 High School Credit + 3 College Credits from Herkimer College (HU 101)

    ASL 4 is the final course in a series of four sequential courses that will teach students to develop advanced skills in American Sign Language. Through twelve units of study on topics such as Deaf Literature, Deaf refugees, Complex Classifiers, and Geographical signs, students will further develop previously learned skills as well as learn news skills in American Sign Language. Students will use presentational/expressive and receptive language skills to meet expectations. This course is derived from the New York State Learning Standards for Languages Other than English. The course is also aligned to the national proficiency guidelines published by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL).

    • Prerequisites: ASL 1 and ASL 2
    • Grades: 11, 12
    • Textbooks: weSIGN: ASL & Deaf Perspectives, For Hearing People Only
    • Final Exam: teacher-created examination