Abstract

Abstract:

Little is known about local, vernacular language ideologies about sign language development in deaf and hearing children in diverse communicative ecologies from the perspectives of caregivers. In this article, I argue for the interpretative value of repeated long-term linguistic ethnography for investigating language ideologies as they relate to language practices in different communicative situations. I present a case study of a family with a deaf caregiver, Regina, and two children, Angelica and Martha, who have invented their own communication system known as "making hands" in rural Oaxaca, Mexico. Using the linguistic ethnography approach, I analyze how the caregiver holds different language ideologies toward children's signing competence based on their age and audiological status, and how they shift over time. I also make explicit my positionality as a researcher for its role in shaping the research process of investigating language ideologies.

pdf