Teachers’ Beliefs About ASL and Its Impact in the Classroom

This study explores American Sign Language (ASL) teachers’ beliefs and experiences, and how they influence their instructional approaches and goals for their students. Despite ASL’s growing presence in education as a world language, minimal research has examined ASL teachers’ perspectives and how they shape classroom practices. Through semi-structured interviews, six ASL teachers – three Deaf and three hearing – this research identified four major themes: challenges teachers face in the classroom, cultural takeaways, best teaching practices, and persistent systemic issues affecting ASL’s status in education. Findings suggest that regardless of hearing status, teachers prioritize cultural awareness and respectful engagement with the Deaf community alongside language acquisition. These guide teachers’ classroom approaches and goals for their students once they have left the classroom. This research contributes to understanding ASL education beyond linguistic components, highlighting its role in fostering global citizenship and challenging misconceptions about ASL and Deaf culture. The study’s implications include the importance of teacher collaboration, culturally centered instruction, and redefining classroom success to encompass both linguistic proficiency and cultural competence.