Syllabus for The World of Sign Languages (F25)

Course Syllabus

The World of Sign Languages

Global Society

CSCD 0186, Section 1, CRN 54087
Fall 2025
Instructor: Dr. Hall
Hall-CSCD0816-Syllabus-F25.pdf

The course syllabus will provide you with the course schedule, course objectives, explanations of assignments and assessments, grading policies, and instructor contact information. Please read it carefully. You should have a deep familiarity with the schedule and process of the course.

Instructor Information
Purpose of the Course
The Learning Environment
Course Schedule
Grading & Assessment Guidelines

Technology Guidelines
Academic Guidelines

Basic Course Information

General Education*

This course fulfills the General Education area of Global Society

Meeting Time and Location*

Tues/Thurs, 11:00am-12:20pm, Pearson 212A

Emergency Meetings

In the event that we are unable to meet in person, such as due to bad weather, expect a Canvas announcement directing you to a Zoom meeting or providing other guidance.

Students are to register for the TUAlert System to be made aware of University closures due to weather or other emergency situations and follow all additional university-wide emergency instructions. Students can register for this system on the Campus Safety Services website.

Please note that online classes are generally not affected by campus closures.

Instructor Information

My Name: Dr. Matthew Hall

Please refer to me as Dr. Hall. My pronouns are he/him.

Instructor Biography

I'm an Assistant Professor in the department of Communication Sciences & Disorders, which I direct the First Language Foundations Lab: dedicated to maximizing the developmental potential of all deaf and hard-of-hearing children through theoretical and applied research. I learned American Sign Language as a college student at the University of Rochester, which offers a BA degree in ASL. I also hold a BA in Brain & Cognitive Sciences, and a Ph.D. in Cognitive & Experimental Psychology. I do not have lived experience of disability, and have endeavored to design the course so that you don't have to take my word for things: instead, we will be learning from DHH people's own life stories and also their scholarship.

My Contact Information*

Please reach out to me at any time for assistance with the course or just to chat about the field or navigating university life. The best way to reach me is to send me a message through the Canvas inbox or email me at matthall@temple.edu. I will generally respond within 24 hours, Monday through Friday. Please do not send a follow-up email before 24 hours have passed.

My Office*

Paley 330B

Student Drop-In Hours*

I set aside time after class on Tuesdays (12:30-2:00pm) and before class on Thursdays (9:30-11:00am) for you to come to my office with no appointment necessary. We can discuss the course content, your progress on the assignments, your future in the field, or anything else you need to talk about. If my regular Drop-In Hours don’t fit your schedule, please email me to make an appointment. I want to help you succeed! You can also visit by Zoom during these times: if the zoom room isn’t open, just send me a quick email and I’ll hop on. (Please do not use the link outside of those designated hours, as I may be in other meetings. If the waiting room is turned on, I'm meeting with another student.)

Purpose of the Course

Overall Purpose

This General Education Global Society course expands the breadth of your knowledge and skills, adding to the depth acquired in your major. This course emphasizes the critical competencies of critical thinking, oral/written communication, and information literacy while delving into the fascinating, complex, sometimes tragic, sometimes glorious world of sign languages, and the lives of those who use them all over the world.

Overview of the Course*

“But isn’t sign language universal??” Nope! Sign languages are as different from -and similar to- each other as spoken languages are. Likewise, the lives of d/Deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) people around the world can look very different from one another, but often also share key similarities. How much of this is due to deafness itself, and how much is due to the ways that different societies respond to deafness? What do DHH people in different countries view as the most significant issues they face? Whose priorities are reflected in the policies and practices that shape what DHH people’s lives look like? What kinds of changes would have the greatest beneficial impact? We’ll examine these questions on a global scale through a framework that emphasizes the core principle of disability justice: nothing about us without us.

One thing we won’t do in this course is learn a sign language. (Although if that’s something you’re interested in, Temple does offer courses in American Sign Language!)

# Credit Hours: 3

Prerequisites/Corequisites

This course has no pre-requisites, but it does expect that you’re able to manage a semester-long project and work effectively as a member of a group. If you’re new to Temple and not sure you’re ready, consider taking this course in a future semester. That said, support is available, and first-year and transfer students can and do excel in the course when they are diligent about showing up and staying engaged.

Learning Goals*

Successful completion of this General Education course will enhance your ability to:

Think critically
Understand historical and contemporary issues in context
Understand and apply knowledge in and across disciplines
Communicate effectively orally and in writing
Function as an engaged citizen in a diverse and globalized world
Identify, access, and evaluated sources of information
Maintain lifelong curiosity

Furthermore, our specific focus on Global Society will develop your ability to:

Understand the influences (e.g. political, social, social, historical, cultural, artistic, literary, geographic, economic) on world societies or processes (e.g. globalization) linking world societies
Access and analyze materials related to world societies and cultures
Develop observations and conclusions about selected themes in world societies and cultures
Construct interpretations using evidence and critical analysis
Communicate and defend interpretations

All materials, activities, and assessments of this course are designed to help you achieve these goals. If at any time you feel that you are not making progress towards one of these goals, please reach out to me. It is my job to help you get there!

General Education Competencies and Area Learning Goals

The PDF version of the syllabus contains a detailed breakdown of how this course satisfies both program-wide competencies and specific area goals.

Competencies: https://bulletin.temple.edu/undergraduate/general-education/#Program_Competencies

Area Goals: https://bulletin.temple.edu/undergraduate/general-education/#GenEd_Courses ]

The Learning Environment

How Class Will Be Conducted

This is an in-person course. Class time will feature a mix of lecture, discussion, and active learning in small groups/teams. Outside of class, students are expected to work both independently and collaboratively, depending on the assignment. This approach allows the whole class to master a core set of fundamental knowledge and skills while also allowing each team and each student to develop more specialized knowledge tailored to their interests.

Classroom Civility

It is important to foster a respectful and productive learning environment that includes all students in our diverse community of learners. Our differences, some of which are outlined in the University's nondiscrimination statement, will add richness to this learning experience. Therefore, all opinions and experiences, no matter how different or controversial they may be perceived, must be respected in the tolerant spirit of academic discourse.

Treat your classmates and instructor with respect in all communication, class activities, and meetings. You are encouraged to comment, question, or critique an idea, but you are not to attack an individual. Please consider that sarcasm, humor, and slang can be misconstrued in online interactions and generate unintended disruptions. Profanity should be avoided as should the use of all capital letters when composing responses in discussion threads, which can be construed as “shouting” online. Remember to be careful with your own and others' privacy. In general, have your behavior mirror how you would like to be treated by others.

For more information, please visit the IDEAL website.

Materials*

The required course materials for this course are open educational resources and are available to you at no cost. Links to other required readings, videos, etc., will be supplied electronically in Canvas in the appropriate module.

Software or Other Supplies

If you need access to basic software for creating documents, slideshows, or spreadsheets, you have free access to Microsoft 365.

Although this is an in-person course, many class sessions will include activities in which having an internet-connected laptop or tablet will facilitate participation. You will also need access to word processing software that allows you to track changes and compare documents. I strongly recommend using Microsoft Word (either the online or desktop versions), which is available to you at no additional cost. (You already paid for it in fees: might as well use it!). It is technically possible to accomplish this in google docs but it’s a headache.

This course will use Canvas, and will require students to find sources of information on their own, for which access to an internet-connected computer will also be useful. Students will also provide anonymous feedback during the course via http://teammatesv4.appspot.com/, and so will need to register an account there, following the instructor’s directions. It is expected that students will check their university email daily.

You are required to comply with Temple University’s Computer and Security Policy.

Limited resources are available for students who do not have the technology they need for class. Students with educational technology needs, including no computer or camera or insufficient Wifi-access, should submit a Student Technology Assistance Application located in TUPortal and linked to the Dean of Students Support and Resources webpage. On-campus computer labs have resumed normal operations and are available for your use. The Affordable Connectivity Program is available to purchase discounted internet services and devices for qualified individuals. On-campus computer labs are available for student use. Note that there are technology resources available for students, including on-campus computers available for student use, the Tech Center computer labs and free laptop and battery borrowing at Charles Library, software that is available for free download and other specialty software that may be available for remote access through ITS.

Accessibility*

It is important to me that every student has the opportunity to succeed in this course. Please reach out to me if any obstacle is in the way of your success.

Any student who has a need for accommodations based on the impact of a documented disability or medical condition should contact Disability Resources and Services (DRS) located in the Howard Gittis Student Center South, 4th Floor at drs@temple.edu or 215-204-1280 to request accommodations and learn more about the resources available to you. If you have a DRS accommodation letter to share with me, or you would like to discuss your accommodations, please contact me as soon as practical. I will work with you and with DRS to coordinate reasonable accommodations for all students with documented disabilities. All discussions related to your accommodations will be confidential. Students can learn more about the accommodation process and pre-register on the DRS website. Students may register at any time during the semester, but accommodations are not active until you register, so I recommend doing so as early in the semester as possible.

Information regarding accessibility for additional technologies is provided below:

Resources and Support*

Sometimes the biggest factors impacting student success are things happening beyond the scope of the individual classroom. Temple provides a wide array of resources both to help you overcome academic challenges and those not directly related to the educational challenges of the course. Please reach out to me if you need help deciding which resources might be right for you.

Student Success Center

University Libraries

Undergraduate Research Support

Career Center

Tuttleman Counseling Services

Disability Resources and Services

Wellness Resource Center

Student Health Services

If you are experiencing food insecurity or financial struggles, Temple provides resources and support. Notably, the Temple University Cherry Pantry is in operation, as well as a variety of resources from the Division of Student Affairs.

Library Resources*

Temple University Libraries provide resources to assist Temple students with their class projects and research needs. Visit the Libraries’ website to find millions of articles, books, video, and other resources, both in print and online.

This library guide developed for our course will be used for the following assignments: [Delete: Link to your library guide if there is one.]

The site also provides tutorials to help you start your research, as well as subject and course research guides to help you identify resources that may be particularly useful for this class.

Contact the library at any stage of the research process. You can chat with a librarian 24/7 or make an appointment with your subject librarian, who can help you explore a topic, craft a research question, and identify and cite sources.

Course Schedule

[Delete: Your course schedule should follow a predictable, easy-to-navigate pattern, such as week-to-week, day-by-day, or unit-by-unit. Include the first and last day of classes, the last day to add/drop, the last day to withdraw, days off, breaks, wellness days, etc. See Temple's Academic Calendar for dates.]

Session	Date	Topic	Formative Assessment Deadlines (details on Canvas)	Major Project Milestones
1	26-Aug	Course overview	Assigned viewing
2	28-Aug	Team formation, skill practice	Skill check 1: searching	Select Topic & Region
3	2-Sep	Skill practice	Skill check 2: source types
4	4-Sep	Skill practice	Skill check 3: citation types & Content quiz
5	9-Sep	Medical model	Assigned viewing
6	11-Sep	Social model	Assigned viewing
7	16-Sep	Advocacy Part 1	Content quiz
8	18-Sep	Advocacy Part 2	Skill check 4: summarizing
9	23-Sep	Skill practice / Project prep	Skill check 4: quoting
10	25-Sep	Language Emergence	Assigned viewing	Submit Part 1 (individual)
11	30-Sep	Language Emergence	Content quiz
12	2-Oct	Human & Civil Rights	Assigned viewing
13	7-Oct	Human & Civil Rights	Content quiz; Mid-semester survey
14	9-Oct	Early Hearing Detection & Intervention	Assigned viewing
15	14-Oct	Early Hearing Detection & Intervention	Content quiz
16	16-Oct	Language Deprivation	Assigned viewing
17	21-Oct	Language Deprivation	Content quiz	Submit Part 2 (individual)
18	23-Oct	Primary & Secondary Ed	Skill check 6: In-text citations
19	28-Oct	Primary & Secondary Ed	Content quiz
20	30-Oct	Higher Ed & Employment	Skill check 7: Reference list
21	4-Nov	Higher Ed & Employment	Content quiz
22	6-Nov	Healthcare	Assigned viewing
23	11-Nov	Healthcare	Content quiz
24	13-Nov	Endangerment & Revitalization	Assigned viewing	Submit Part 3 (Team)
25	18-Nov	Endangerment & Revitalization	Content quiz
26	20-Nov	Flex Time	Assigned viewing
27	2-Dec	Flex Time	Content quiz
28	4-Dec	Wrap-up	Final survey
Finals Week	12-Dec	-	-	Revised Submission

Grading & Assessment Guidelines

Grading Scale

**Table 2 - Grade Percentage Breakdown**
Percentage	Letter Grade
94-100	A
90-93	A-
87-89	B+
84-86	B
80-83	B-
77-79	C+
74-76	C
70-73	C-
67-69	D+
64-66	D
61-63	D-
0-60	F

Course Minimum Grade*

A grade of “C-” or better is required in all GenEd courses for you to satisfy a General Education requirement.*

I will do my best to warn you if you are in danger of not meeting this minimum, but you should reach out to me if you become worried about not achieving the minimum needed grade. Note that the course grade displayed in Canvas may not be indicative of the overall course grade. (For example, if you've only turned in 1 assignment all semester but got 100% on it, Canvas may indicate that you have a 100%, because it isn't accounting for the missing work. The whole course is scored out of 100 points: to calculate your grade to date, simply all up all of the points you've accumulated over the course of the semester.

Assessment Summary*

The assessments in this course have been created for two reasons: (1) For you to demonstrate your progress towards the learning goals for the course and receive useful feedback. (2) For you to practice skills and develop ways of thinking that will be of use to you in the future.

Graded Components of the Course (see Canvas for details & evaluation rubrics)
Assigned viewing: 9% - generally due once/week, online (VoiceThread/Canvas)

Students are assigned to view videos featuring Deaf experts explaining key concepts. The majority of these videos are interviews with Deaf informants from around the world, conducted by the instructor. As proof of completion, and to encourage engagement with the material, students are assigned to answer a few questions about the video. 11 videos are assigned; 10 count.

Scholarship skill checks: 20% - generally due once/week (via Canvas)

There will be 7 skill check assignments over the course of the semester, each targeting a different scholarship skill: searching, identifying source types, identifying components of citations, paraphrasing, quoting, using in-text citations, and creating reference lists. Each will be graded on a 0-3 scale. To encourage skill development, students will have the opportunity to continue retaking the skill checks as many times as they wish, with the most recent score counting. Perfect performance would be 21 points; 20 will count toward the final grade.

Content quizzes: 22% - generally due once/week (via Canvas)

There will be 11 short quizzes over the course of the semester (2 points each), designed to reinforce key concepts from the lectures on each primary topic. 20 of the 22 possible points will count toward the final grade.

Final project: 38% - 1^st draft due week 8; revision due in finals week (via Canvas)

Students will self-organize into groups based on their interest in one of the primary topics (e.g. healthcare, education, employment, civil rights, etc.). They will then investigate what is known about that topic with respect to a specific geographic area of their choosing. 30% of the grade will be based on the content of this individual report, with the remaining 8% coming from the introduction & conclusion sections, which will be written collaboratively with fellow group members.

Participation: 12%, divided as follows:

Discussion leading (3%): Students will be assigned to co-lead at least one discussion of an assigned reading or video. They will come prepared with questions for discussion and model thoughtful and respectful engagement with responses from other students.
Survey completion (3%): Students will complete a survey at the midpoint and endpoint of the semester (1.5% each), to provide feedback about the course. Although responses will be anonymized, I will be able to see who has and has not submitted it.
In-class engagement (6%): I will provide a participation rating at the midpoint (~3%) and the endpoint (~3%), based on the degree to which students have been active participants in class activities (including in-class and out-of-class engagement). Students whose participation is lacking at midterm can make up for it by increasing engagement in the second part of the semester.

Late Submissions/Missed Exams & Quizzes

Policies on late/missing work:

Assigned viewing may be completed late for half credit.
Scholarship skill checks may be repeated any number of times until mastery is achieved. However, students must submit a good-faith attempt within 1 week of the original due date in order to be eligible to resubmit. Students who do not meet this criterion but do demonstrate mastery by the end of the semester will receive half credit.
Students who miss content quizzes may earn credit by meeting with the instructor during student drop-in hours to demonstrate knowledge of the content on the missed quiz.
The final project includes several associated milestones, including the annotated bibliography, first draft, peer review, introduction & conclusion (collaborative), and revision. With the exception of the revision (where there is no room for extensions), students may request a 3-day extension with no penalty, no questions asked. Work that is submitted after this deadline will receive half credit. (For instance, if your peer review arrives more than 3 days after the stated due date but all other components are submitted on time, you would receive half credit for the peer review and regular credit for all other components.)

Class Attendance & Participation

To achieve course learning goals, you must attend and participate in classes. It is your responsibility to contact your instructors to create a plan for participation and engagement in the course as soon as they can do so, and to plan to complete all assignments in a timely fashion when illness delays their completion. Please note that I grade participation, not attendance. It is possible to attend without participating, and it is possible to participate even if you aren’t always able to attend. (For example, you can be proactive in working with your teammates, come to student drop-in hours, and engage with students’ comments on the assigned viewing.) As noted above, attendance is evaluated at the midpoint of the semester and again at the end. One critical component of your participation grade comes from ratings obtained anonymous by your teammates. It is therefore in your best interest to neither freeload not to hoard control.

School-Life Conflict

Many unpredictable things can happen over the course of a semester. If you find yourself struggling to balance your education and your other commitments, please reach out to me immediately so that we can work together to build a plan for your success. Some of the resources in the next section may also be of use to you.

Attendance and Your Health

To achieve course learning goals, students must attend and participate in classes, according to the course requirements. However, if you have tested positive for or are experiencing symptoms of a contagious illness, you should not come to campus or attend in-person classes or activities. It is your responsibility to contact me to create a plan for participation and engagement in the course as soon as you can do so, and to make a plan to complete all assignments in a timely fashion.

Religious Holidays

It is your right to observe religious holidays without impacting your opportunity to learn and succeed in this course. Please reach out to me at the start of the semester so that deadlines can be reviewed in advance of your religious observations. You will still be held responsible for course content and any assignments, but you will not lose points for attendance and participation on days important to your faith.

Caregiver Responsibilities

I have great respect for students who are pursuing their education while responsible for the care of children or other family members. Please contact me if you encounter challenges that require you to miss a class session, or if your caregiving responsibilities are interfering with your success in the course. Together we may be able to find some flexibility to support your learning.

Withdrawal

If you are considering withdrawing from the course after the add/drop date, please don’t make that decision alone! Withdrawing from the course without talking to me first eliminates the possibility of finding a path to success for you. Furthermore, it is extremely important that you consult your academic advisor before withdrawing. They will be able to walk you through how the withdrawal would impact your progress towards your degree and your graduation date.

Please check the academic calendar for the last day to withdraw from a course.

Incomplete

A student will be eligible for a grade of “Incomplete” only if the student: 1) has completed at least 51% of the work at a passing level, 2) is unable to complete the work for a serious reason beyond their control, and 3) files a signed agreement with the instructor outlining the work to be completed and the time frame in which that work will be completed. The student is responsible for initiating this process, and all incomplete forms must be sent to the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs prior to the start of study days in that semester.

Please refer to the following for further details: Temple University’s Incomplete Policy. (Policy #02.10.13).

Technology Guidelines

Technology Requirements*

To participate in this course, you will need the equipment, software, and internet access necessary to reliably use Zoom and Canvas, as well as “productivity tools” like word processors and slide show creators.

Note that there are technology resources available for students, including on-campus computers available for student use, the Tech Center computer labs and free laptop and battery borrowing at Charles Library, software that is available for free download and other specialty software that may be available for remote access through ITS.

Technical Support

For a listing of technical support services available to Temple University students, see the Tech Support page.

Live Chat or Request Help: help.temple.edu

Phone: 215-204-8000

Email: help@temple.edu

Website: its.temple.edu

Location: The TECH Center, Room 106

Privacy and Data Protection

Please see the links below to become familiar with the privacy policies for each of the following:

AI Policies

In support of the goal of developing information literacy, you can choose whether/how to use generative AI in your submitted work. You may choose:

Traditional Track: The use of generative AI tools (e.g. ChatGPT, Dall-e, etc.) is permitted (though not required) for the following activities:
- Brainstorming and refining your ideas
- Fine tuning your research questions
- Finding information on your topic
- Drafting an outline to organize your thoughts
- Checking grammar and style.

For students who choose the Traditional Track, the use of generative AI tools is NOT permitted for the following activities:

Impersonating you in classroom contexts, such as by using the tool to compose discussion board prompts assigned to you or content that you put into a Zoom chat.
Completing group work that your group has assigned to you
Writing a draft of a writing assignment.
Writing entire sentences, paragraphs or papers to complete class assignments.

For students who choose the Traditional Track, written submissions must include the following attestation: “While generative AI may or may not have been used to gather or organize information on this topic, the words and ideas presented here are the original work of the human author(s), and were not generated by AI.”

AI-Assisted Track: Students who select this option are permitted to use generative AI for all of the allowable purposes above, PLUS the following:
- Completing group work that your group has assigned to you
- Writing a draft of a writing assignment… with the following provisos:
  - It is expected that the first draft will be generated by AI. Students in this track will therefore submit (1) the prompt that they entered and the name of the AI service being used, (2) the original AI-generated text, and (3) a version of the final submission showing the changes that were made in the process of verifying and adding sources, rewriting for breadth, depth, clarity, etc.
  - The grading for students who select this track will depend heavily on the quantity and quality of edits between the AI-generated version and the human-edited version.
  - The written document must begin with the following acknowledgement, or an appropriately-modified version thereof: “The first draft of this document was generated by [name of generated AI service], in response to the following prompt [insert prompt]. All claims have since been either verified or corrected by the human author(s), and are accompanied by appropriate citations to verifiable and trustworthy sources. ”

A note about group submissions: Although you will be working collaboratively for most of the semester, the vast majority of your graded work is independent: you are therefore free to choose whichever track you want, regardless of what other people in your group decide. HOWEVER: for the collaborative introduction and conclusion, your group must come to consensus on which track to choose

One final disclaimer: This is a new practice for me, and I reserve the right to update this policy at the midpoint of the semester; the new policy would apply to work from that point forward.

Academic Guidelines

Academic Freedom*

Freedom to teach and freedom to learn are inseparable facets of academic freedom. I have the freedom and responsibility to design and facilitate our learning environment to best achieve the promise of the course as outlined in its official description. You have the responsibility to engage with the course in good faith and freedom from mistreatment when your opinion differs from mine. Note that it is not an abuse of this freedom for me to require that you support relevant opinions with clear argumentation and solid evidence. For more on academic freedom, consult the official Temple policy on the matter.

Academic Integrity*

Temple University believes strongly in academic honesty and integrity. Plagiarism and academic cheating are, therefore, prohibited. All work you submit for assessment should be your own efforts. For more on this topic, consult the relevant portions of Temple Bulletin and the Student Conduct Code.