Research Information System
The 5th International English for Specific Purposes Conference (METU-ESPC), Ankara, Turkey, 1 - 02 July 2022
English teaching methods
and materials for second language (L2) teaching is also adopted for teaching
English to deaf students (Goldberg & Bordman 1974). Though, fundamentally
relying on compensatory visual input without access to the sounds of spoken
language causes complexities in (L2) acquisition of English for the Deaf (Quigley
& King, 1980; Berent & Clymer, 2007). In terms of whether to teach
grammar implicitly or explicitly, studies have put across that the hypothesis
that language can be learned with little consciousness is theoretically
problematic (e.g., Schmidt, 1993, 1995; Smith, 1993). There is also extensive
factual evidence that teaching approaches that focus mainly on meaning without
focusing on grammar are inadequate (Harley & Swain, 1984; Lapkin, Hart,
& Swain, 1991; among others). Likewise, recent research carried out on
second language acquisition has determined that instructed language learning
has major effects level and rate of L2 acquisition. In particular, research has
shown that form-focused instruction is especially effective when it is
incorporated into a meaningful communicative context (Nassaji & Fotos,
2011)
The modality differences
in both languages results in different grammatical structures, thus making it
difficult for the Deaf to learn the structures of spoken languages. Thus, the
grammatical rules should be explicitly taught to the students. It is for this
reason that the present study focuses on presenting an example curriculum
design for teaching English as a second language to Deaf students based on form
focused instruction of grammatical information. The afore mentioned curriculum
follows the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) for English beginners
(the study will only outline the curriculum for A1 level). It is hoped that the
curriculum presented will help promote Deaf students’ literacy and linguistic
skills of English.
Keyword: CEFR, English teaching to Deaf Students,
Form focused teaching, teaching English as a Second Language