Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

This course studies four major interrelated aspects of Deaf people and their culture: 1) the different perspectives from Deaf and hearing communities, 2) values, social customs and culture of Deaf people, 3) the literature and folklore of Deaf cultural arts and 4) the implications of cultural differences and oppression at the intersection of the Deaf and hearing worlds. 

Upon completion of the course students should be able to:

• Discuss modern paradigms for the Deaf experience, applying current trends in social discourse to interactions with members of the Deaf community.
• Recognize subtle themes in language, interaction, conversations, and institutions that marginalize Deaf people and perpetuate oppression.
• Understand and recognize one’s own cultural filters, social customs and other cultural biases and how they differ from values, social customs, and perspectives of a variety of Deaf, Deaf-blind, and hard of hearing people.
• Apply cultural understandings learned in class effectively in authentic interactions with native signers.

In class activities may include group discussion, viewing videos of relevant topics, short student presentations, reaction paper, and cultural activities.

Assessments will be done through quizzes, exams, assignments, and reaction paper.

Course content will include:

• Culture in general, American Culture, and American Deaf Culture.  
• Different perspectives based on background, language, communication mode, gender, age, ethnicity, values, social customs, cultural aspects, historical context
• Deaf culture in theater, storytelling, literature, folklore, cross-cultural, and high and low context.