I am not an expert, but I will dream a littel bit:
1) The sign language could be used as first "baby words". I have a Baby and in the first week you can teach him to get out the tonge. After a par months you can teach him to move the hand showing "come here" and "hello/bye". So maybe you can teach the baby to do the eat and the drink sign (an easy one). (And of course, the baby fast use of the language will open a new world, better care and a faster brain development).
2) The languages is a nationalistic thema, a change-cost and a barrier benefit vs comon language benefit. This Emotional part has created big problems, but it should not be a big problem in the small sign-language comunity (small in comparison with the overall population). If there is a political will to change the "oficial" sign teaching language, it can be done.
3) At the end, the language learning influencies come from three points:
- The access environment (contact with the languages),
- the usefulnes (direct interest) and
- the emotional link to the language.
So the sign language will remain as a side languages. But if it provides the first baby words, an international last resource-language and a languages for deaf persons, enougth interest can be aroused.
4) There is no sin outside inertia to have different sign languages, so if political emotions are not a problem, it can be change worldwide with the gobernment support. An language improvement should be implemented with base in one of the main sign languages, with special care to the first baby words (tonge, diaper, eat, drink, pain, hello, bye, love, I, you, that/there/to point), and extended baby words (useful words that can be easely learned by a baby before the first year).
5) The language schould be structurated with 5 levels: a)baby first words, b)baby extended/beginers (), c)middle level, d)advanced and e)teacher. Every level has a usefulnes and a "users target" a)=babies and families, b) teached to the students..
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A comment on Conversation: What do you think about the future of the sign language?
I am not an expert, but I will dream a littel bit:
1) The sign language could be used as first "baby words". I have a Baby and in the first week you can teach him to get out the tonge. After a par months you can teach him to move the hand showing "come here" and "hello/bye". So maybe you can teach the baby to do the eat and the drink sign (an easy one). (And of course, the baby fast use of the language will open a new world, better care and a faster brain development).
2) The languages is a nationalistic thema, a change-cost and a barrier benefit vs comon language benefit. This Emotional part has created big problems, but it should not be a big problem in the small sign-language comunity (small in comparison with the overall population). If there is a political will to change the "oficial" sign teaching language, it can be done.
3) At the end, the language learning influencies come from three points:
- The access environment (contact with the languages),
- the usefulnes (direct interest) and
- the emotional link to the language.
So the sign language will remain as a side languages. But if it provides the first baby words, an international last resource-language and a languages for deaf persons, enougth interest can be aroused.
4) There is no sin outside inertia to have different sign languages, so if political emotions are not a problem, it can be change worldwide with the gobernment support. An language improvement should be implemented with base in one of the main sign languages, with special care to the first baby words (tonge, diaper, eat, drink, pain, hello, bye, love, I, you, that/there/to point), and extended baby words (useful words that can be easely learned by a baby before the first year).
5) The language schould be structurated with 5 levels: a)baby first words, b)baby extended/beginers (), c)middle level, d)advanced and e)teacher. Every level has a usefulnes and a "users target" a)=babies and families, b) teached to the students..