DEAF AWARENESS TRAINING

Deaf Awareness training aims to promote understanding of Deafness and Deaf Culture. The ultimate goal of Deaf Awareness training is to reduce barriers between Deaf and Hearing people and combat discrimination.

The CDA offer accredited Deaf Awareness training programmes to organisations and groups. To learn more about these programmes, delivered by a qualified and experienced trainer, email Susan directly at susan@corkdeaf.ie

Be Deaf Aware!

Did you know that many Deaf people consider themselves to be a part of a linguistic and cultural minority as opposed to being disabled?

Did you know that there are different Sign Languages in different countries? In Ireland, we use Irish Sign Language (ISL). In Britain, British Sign Language (BSL) is used and in America, American Sign Language is used (ASL)!

Did you know that when the word ‘Deaf’ is written with a capital ‘D’, it has quite a different meaning to the word ‘deaf’ when written with a small ‘d’? Big ‘D’ Deaf is used to refer to the cultural experience of being Deaf. Many Deaf people consider themselves to be part of a Deaf Community, which has its own separate visual language, customs, traditions and culture. Small ‘d’ deaf refers to the audiological condition of hearing loss and deaf people who do not see themselves as part of a Deaf Community.

Some elements of Deaf Culture:

• The Deaf Community values a sense of Community! Connections with other Deaf people are so important and members of the Deaf Community will often link in with friends from all over the country.
• Deaf people may be quite direct in their communication. This can appear as ‘bluntness’ to hearing people.
• Communication is generally very expressive as facial expression, eye contact and body language are vital elements of Sign Language.
• There are many wonderful Deaf films, poems, plays and artworks. Basically, the Deaf arts are as diverse as hearing arts, with an emphasis on the visual! For example, a Deaf comedian may base a joke around the fact that two Signs look very similar. It would be humorous to a Sign Language user but not to a hearing person as there may be no connection between the translated words in spoken language.