Description
Users of Czech sign language and Norwegian sign language, together with experts in desktop publishing, will meet to share their experience and know-how in the field of publishing information in sign languages for the purposes of higher education and professional carrier of the deaf. They will compare the existing technical tools for that purpose (shorter video documents, video books in sign languages, sign dictionaries, instant video communication clients). Pieces of good practice will be assessed within a more general framework of universal learning design and hybrid books containing more layers (text, audio, video) and guidelines for such publishing, as well as a strategy for using them in both secondary and tertiary education will be proposed.
Summary of project results
Users of Czech sign language and Norwegian sign language, together with experts in desktop publishing, shared their experience and know-how in the field of publishing information in sign languages for the purposes of higher education and professional carrier of the deaf. They existing technical tools were compared (shorter video documents, video books in sign languages, sign dictionaries, instant video communication clients), and pieces of good practice were assessed within a more general framework of universal learning design and hybrid books containing more layers (text, audio, video). The project resulted in the elaboration of guidelines for desktop publishing in sign languages and a strategy for using them in both secondary and tertiary education. The main benefits of the project concern deaf sign language users, mainly high school and university students in the Czech Republic and Norway. Considering that the law gives them the right to complete their education in their own language, but there have not been so far clearly defined standards for publishing structured documents in that language, there is a fundamental need to develop such standards that would allow to rely more on publications during secondary and tertiary education. The project represents a step towards establishing standards on an international level, and it also contributed to the development of the sign language itself, mainly as concerns scientific terminology.
Summary of bilateral results
Statped is the Norwegian national educational institution providing support to students with special needs. It consists of four regional sections and a main office located in Oslo. It is a public service and operates under the auspices of the Norwegian Directorate for Education and Training; its activities cover all spheres of the education system. Among them, the role of national provider of educational material including books was important in this project which is the task of the Centre for Educational Materials and Technology Development (Laringsressurser og teknologiutvikling) in Heimdal (as a detached workplace of the main office in Oslo). The specific task of the Centre in the project was to share the existing experience in preparing and producing documents in sign language for educational purposes and to compare them with the Czech one.