by Ashton Goodell, KTUU
Thursday, February 04, 2010

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Parents of deaf children are trying to educate lawmakers and teachers on the value of teaching children more than one language, especially American Sign Language.

The Deaf Bilingual Coalition says teachers often don't have the background they need in American Sign Language to educate deaf children.

And they say a lot of parents are misinformed about what they should do to help their deaf children.

They say parents are often looking for a quick fix like cochlear implants, or they put pressure on their children to learn how to speak without hearing.

Thursday, the Alaska Deaf Council talked about the importance of teaching both sign and English, to help deaf children easily communicate and find a sense of identity.

"If we can just allow deaf people to be deaf and be a linguistic minority and be proud of who they are and give our children that opportunity," said Tami Hossler with the American Society for Deaf Children.

Workshops discussing education and awareness of sign language will continue Friday and Saturday.

Contact Ashton Goodell at agoodell@ktuu.com