Where Sign Language Studies Has Led Us in Forty Years: Opening High School and University Education for Deaf People in Viet Nam through Sign Language Analysis, Teaching, and Interpretation

This paper discusses how the Nippon Foundation-funded project “Opening University Education to Deaf People in Viet Nam through Sign Language Analysis, Teaching, and Interpretation,” also known as the Dong Nai Deaf Education Project, has been implemented through sign language studies from 2000 through 2012. This project has provided deaf adults in Viet Nam with their first opportunity for higher educational programs (junior high school, senior high school, and university). Major topics for discussion include the impact of the project, the high level of success of the project, and how the findings of sign language studies have been specifically utilized to ensure the success of the project.