Random curiosities

I use captions on TV/cable for basically everything because my speech discrimination isn't all that great at normal volumes, so I know how invaluable they are. I also wish there were more open-captioned movies in theaters. But, having recently learned that some portion of the Deaf community isn't completely fluent in English, I have to wonder how beneficial the captions are to them. Are captions basically for HoH and bilingual Deaf??

I also was wondering, if you are driving, is it possible to have a meaningful conversation in ASL with the passenger?

Comments

moi said…
To answer your two questions... :)

1. In my opinion, basically, captions are for people who have at least some English and benefit from visual input, yeah. Captions in Farsi, say, would be completely useless to me. Captions in French, however, would be of *some* benefit for me, since I can function somewhat in French.

2. Yes, it is, if both are skilled. It is a skill that requires practice and it's not one for the faint of heart. *grin* My mom still gets incredibly nervous when I tell her to go ahead with the conversation when I'm driving. The passenger usually leans forward and pauses a lot. When the driver can't look because of a sharp turn or something, the driver places a hold on the conversation.
July 13, 2007 at 12:27 AM
Dianrez said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
July 16, 2007 at 5:26 PM
Dianrez said…
Captions are my lifeblood, but yes, there are those who have difficulties in English, and they are not all deaf people!

Habitual reading of captions improves their understanding. My Spanish relatives love the captions too, keeping the sound on so they can match the heard with the spelled word. My deaf teen son is improving his reading by captions and frequently laughs out loud at the most sophisticated dialogue.

Re. talking while driving: I get scared. Yeah! But I do it anyway, and so does the other deaf members of the family. Still, it's better not to do it unless it is an emergency, and I try to avoid it generally. One should consider the skill of watching road changes a higher priority.
July 16, 2007 at 5:30 PM
Belle said…
About holding ASL convos in the car with the driver, for Pete's sake, do not sign slowly! I am still trying to train my mother on the etiquette and strategies of talking to me while I am driving. (She is hearing, yeah, and it is nerve-racking for her ...) She still hasn't mastered the lean-forward trick moi mentioned above.
July 17, 2007 at 3:23 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

New hearing aids - Rexton Cobalt 16

I picked up my new hearing aids today and thought I would post my initial thoughts. First, let's take a little journey back in time to understand some of my history. I got my first set of ears 10 years ago. They were the Senso+ model in the CIC (completely-in-the-canal) size, made by Widex. They were almost invisible and functioned fairly well, but after four years they were no longer powerful enough to keep up with my progressive loss, so I got a new set. The new set were Phonak Claro ITE (in-the-ear) models, and were far more technologically advanced, and also far larger and more noticeable. I was able to control the volume and choose programs using my Phonak wristwatch. I have worn these for about five years now, but again my hearing loss has outgrown the volume possible with these models. Fast forward to present day. I recently bought a pair of Rexton Cobalt 16 (same as Siemens Pure 700) and a bluetooth remote control that Rexton calls an RCU (same as the Siemens Tek). The
Read more

Guest Blog - Children and Hearing Loss-Changing Lives by Raising Awareness

This is my first guest post, by fellow blogger John O'Connor -  bloggingwjohno.blogspot.com Perfect hearing is something that the average person really takes for granted. When people think of hearing loss, they often associate the condition with people who are old in age. Hearing loss is common in babies and young children. A person can be born deaf of suffer hearing loss gradually over time. Of the estimated 738,000 people in the U.S. who have experienced substantial hearing loss, 8 percent of those people fall under the age of 18 . People should understand that hearing loss is something that affects people from all backgrounds of all ages. Many people, especially children, are at risk for hearing loss. It is estimated that 15 percent of children between the ages of 6-19 years old have experienced low or high frequency hearing at the 16th decibel in one or both ears. Children who may be hard of hearing may find it hard to grasp certain concepts like word order or may hav
Read more

ASL class starts today - Level TWO!!

I am really excited about taking the level 2 class this year. We were all really worried that it wasn't going to happen since we needed a minimum number of people and a couple people from level 1 moved away over the summer. So it is very welcome news that the class is happening, and I am really looking forward to taking my ASL to the next level!!
Read more