What’s So Hard About Learning ASL?: Students’ & Teachers’ Perceptions

This descriptive study surveys 12 teachers and 72 students of ASL for their perceptions of difficulty in learning ASL as a foreign language. Students and teachers rate the difficulty of various linguistic structures in ASL. Results show that while they generally agree on which aspects are the most difficult to learn, teachers consistently rate the level of difficulty more highly than students. Students and teachers also talk about problematic sociolinguistic or affective aspects of learning ASL, such as overcoming cultural inhibitions, learning to interact with Deaf people, and the attitudes and motivations of ASL learners. The respective benefits and disadvantages of Deaf and hearing teachers are examined from the points of view of students and teachers.