Blinn College
Bryan Campus
American Sign Language I
(SGNL 1401/Section 300/327/329)
Course Syllabus
Fall 2012
Professor:
Robyn J. Marcak
Email: robyn.marcak@blinn.edu
Office:
Health Bldg H 258
Office Hours: MW 2:00-2:45 pm (Blinn)
TR 10:40-11:10 am (BCHS)
TR 2:30-4:15 pm (Blinn)
By Appointment
Office Phone: 979-314-7004
Call me through Sorenson Video Relay Service if you need to get a hold of me.
1) Dial toll free: 1-866-327-8877
2) When asked, provide my full name and videophone number:
a) Robyn J. Marcak
b) 979-314-7004
3) A Sorenson video relay interpreter will connect us.
Website:
Links:
http://www.blinn.edu/brazos/humanities/rmarcak
http://www.aslpro.com http://netac.rit.edu/goals
http://www.lifeprint.com
Courses/Labs:
T/R SGNL 1401 300
T/R SGNL 1401 327
M/W SGNL 1401 329
Classrooms:
T/R SGNL 1401 300
T/R SGNL 1401 327
M/W SGNL 1401 329
8:30-9:45 am/9:50-10:40 am (Thurs)
12:00-1:15 pm/1:25-2:15 pm (Thurs)
9:00-10:15am/10:25-11:15 am (Wed)
BCHS314/313
H216/G227
H216/G218
Purpose Statement:
In American Sign Language 1401, the first of four courses in American Sign Language (ASL), students
will learn to development skills in American Sign Language, as well as an appreciation for Deaf culture.
This course is a foreign language. SGNL 1401 supports Blinn’s mission by offering college level transfer
courses for those seeking associate degrees or intending to transfer to senior institutions. This can lead
to interpreting certificate or degree in ASL/Deaf Education.
Course Description: SGNL 1401:
This course is an introduction to American Sign Language and Deaf Culture class. Students
acquire an understanding of multiple aspects of Deaf Culture, including its history, alphabet,
vocabulary, correct grammatical structures, conversational behaviors, and social customs. There
is no prerequisite for this class. It is a 3 hour class and it also has 2 hour lab time. The credit
contains 4 semester hours. Prerequisites: None
Course Objectives and Student Learning Outcomes:
In this course, the students will acquire the following areas:
 demonstrate receptive/expressive skills in ASL
 use facial expressions/body language in ASL
 converse familiar signs in ASL
 discuss various issues in the Deaf community in ASL
 develop speed/clarity of brief conversations in ASL
 identify grammatical structures in ASL
 apply history of deaf education in ASL
 describe appropriate behavior in Deaf Culture
Required Texts:
 Signing Naturally: Level 1 (student workbook/videotape)
Smith, Lentz, and Mikos
 For Hearing People Only
Moore and Levitan
 A Loss for Words-Extra Credit
Walker
 Booklet: Handouts (Blinn Copy Center)
Required Materials:
 Binder with Dividers (5)
 Black Pens/Pencils
 CD/DVD
Tentative Course Schedule:
Weeks:
Dates:
Assignments:
August
8/27 & 8/29
8/28 & 8/30
Syllabus
1
Unit 1 (SN1)
Read FHPO
Quiz #1
Lab: Bravo #1
Pre-Test
8/31
Notes:
1st-8 Chapters
Quiz #1-8/29 & 8/30
Last Day to Register
and/or Change Classes
September
2
3
4
9/3
9/5
9/4 & 9/6
9/10 & 9/12
9/11 & 9/13
9/17 & 9/19
9/18 & 9/20
Holiday-Labor Day
Unit 2 (SN1)
Read FHPO
Quiz #2
Lab: Bravo #2
Video: Deaf Community
TEST #1 (Units 1 & 2)
Project #1
Lab: Bravo #3
Unit 3 (SN1)
Read FHPO
Quiz #3
Lab: Bravo #4
2nd-8 Chapters
Quiz #2-9/5 & 9/6
TEST #1-9/12 & 9/13
Project Due:_______
3rd-8 Chapters
Quiz #3-9/19 & 9/20
5
9/24 & 9/26
9/25 & 9/27
Unit 4 (SN1)
Read FHPO
Quiz #4
Lab: Bravo #5
10/1 & 10/3
10/2 & 10/4
Video: Deaf President
Now
TEST #2 (Units 3 & 4)
Project #2
Lab: Bravo #6
Unit 5 (SN1)
Read FHPO
Quiz #5
Lab: Bravo #7
Unit 6 (SN1)
Read FHPO
Quiz #6
Lab: Bravo #8
Video: Through Deaf
Eyes
TEST #3 (Units 5 & 6)
Project #3
4th-8 Chapters
Quiz #4-9/26 & 9/27
October
6
7
8
9
10/8 & 10/10
10/9 & 10/11
10/15 & 10/17
10/16 & 10/18
10/22 & 10/24
10/23 & 10/25
TEST #2-10/3 & 10/4
Project Due:_______
5th-8 Chapters
Quiz #5-10/10 & 10/11
6th-8 Chapters
Quiz #6-10/17 & 10/18
TEST #3-10/24 & 10/25
Project Due:________
October/November
10
10/29 & 10/31
10/30 & 11/1
Library Day
Movie: Love Is Never
Silent
11
11/5 & 11/7
11/6 & 11/8
Transcriptions W.S.
Classifiers W.S.
Read FHPO
Quiz #7
Quiz #8
Lab: Computer Room
FHPO W.S.
Lab: Computer Room
12
11/12 & 11/14
11/13 & 11/15
11/16
13
11/19 & 11/20
Last Day to Drop with a
“Q.”
Paramaters
a) Handshape
b) Location
c) Movement
d) Palm Orientation
e) Non-Manual
Signals
Quiz #9
Quiz #10
14
December
15
11/21-23
11/26 & 11/28
11/27 & 11/29
12/3 & 12/5
12/4 & 12/6
7th-8 Chapters
Quiz #7-11/7 & 11/8
Quiz #8-11/7 & 11/8
Quiz #9-11/19
Quiz #10-11/20
Holiday-Thanksgiving
Student Conference
Check Answers on FHPO
Review for Final Exam
Post-Test
Movie: Bridge to Silence
16
12/10
Review for Final Exam
Last Day of Classes
Final Exam will be given on:
Thursday, December 6th, at 8:30 am – 10:30 am
SGNL 1401/300 8:30 TR Class
Tuesday, December 11th , at 10:15 am -12:15 pm
SGNL 1401/327 12:00 TR Class
Friday, December 14th, at 7:45 am – 9:45 am
SGNL 1401/329 9:00 MW Class
Plan to take the final at the above time as no early or late finals will be given.
If you have a conflict at TAMU with my final exam time, you need to let your TAMU professor know
that you cannot take my exam at another time. It is very important that you come to my class as
scheduled since the instructor has to do expressive signs during the final exam and it is time consuming.
Whereas at TAMU, it is only written portion.
This schedule is tentative. If there are any changes, it will be announced during class time. Students
are responsible for knowing about these changes even if they were absent.
Course Requirements:
First and foremost, this class will be what you make of it. Learning a visual language takes effort and
persistence - it’s unlike anything you’ve ever attempted. English and American Sign Language are two
completely different languages! It is essential that you make every effort to attend EVERY class on
time and participate in the class activities. This course utilizes visual stimuli to promote skills
development. There is no way to make up an absence. You will be involved in receptive and expressive
activities. There will be pre and post tests, projects, quizzes, reports, social events, tests and final exam.
Grading Criteria:
*Pre Test
* FHPO Group Participation
*1 LFW Group Participation (optional)
*1 Transcriptions Worksheet
*1 Classifiers Worksheet
*1 Report
*2 Deaf Social Events
*3 Projects
*1 Attendance Sheet
a) No Voice
b) Participation
c) Use of ASL
*10 Quizzes
*6 ASL Conversations 1 & 2
*3 Tests
*8 Lab Assignments
*1 Final Exam (including Post Test)
Outcome Final Grade
20 points
20 points
20 points
20 points
20 points
50 points
80 points
90 points
90 points
100 points
120 points
150 points
160 points
160 points
Total: 1100 points
Excellent
Good
Average
Poor
Failure
I
Q
QF
W
A 100-90%
B 89-80%
C 79-70%
D 69-60%
F 59-50%
Incomplete
Dropped
Dropped Failing
Dropped Due to Cause or
Withdrew from College
No talking or use of voice will be tolerated during class sessions. The skills to be developed in this class
depend on visual perception and visual memory. The use of auditory clues inhibits this learning
process for the person speaking and for those who are distracted by that person’s voice. In a true
cross-cultural experience between those who are Deaf and those who are Hearing, it is important to
respect a Deaf person’s position on the discriminatory use of voice in his/her presence. Every time
you use your voice, 5 points will be docked each time your voice is used in class from daily grade (ex:
used voice 3 times Monday night – 15 points docked). Using voice during test to help others cheat is a
distraction, will result in immediate “0” as a final grade on that test.
Service Learning Project combines community service with classroom instruction or student club
activities, focusing on critical, reflective thinking and civic responsibility to engage students. Service
Learning programs involve students in activities that address local needs while developing their
academic or professional skills and commitment to their community. If you do ASL/Deaf social
events and workshops, you must have at least 10 hours of community service. Once you complete the
project; you will receive a Blinn Certificate for recognition. This will help you to build up your
resume if you participate fully. It is optional.
Blinn College Policies:
Civility in the Classroom: Members of the Blinn College community, which includes faculty, staff, and
students, are expected to act honestly and responsibly in all aspects of campus life. Blinn College holds
all members accountable for their actions and words. Therefore, all members should commit
themselves to behave in a manner that recognizes personal respect and demonstrates concern for the
personal dignity, rights, and freedoms of every member of the College community, including respect for
College property and the physical and intellectual property of others.
Civility Notification Statement: If a student is asked to leave the classroom because of uncivil behavior,
the student may not return to that class until he or she arranges a conference with the instructor. It is
the student’s responsibility to arrange for this conference.
Attendance: The College District believes that class attendance is essential for student success;
therefore, students are required to promptly and regularly attend all their classes. A record of
attendance will be maintained from the first day of classes and/or the first day the student’s name
appears on the roster through final examinations. If a student has one week’s worth of unexcused
absences during the semester, he or she will be sent an e-mail by the College District requiring the
student to contact his or her instructor and schedule a conference immediately to discuss his/her
attendance issues. Should the student accumulate two weeks’ worth of unexcused absences, he or she
will be administratively withdrawn from class. In summer classes, the student may be administratively
withdrawn after three unexcused absences. No email warnings will be sent by the college in the
summer.
Blinn College policy excuses absences (with timely documentation) for four causes:
 observance of religious holy days. The student should notify his or her instructor(s) not later
than the 15th day of the semester concerning the specific date(s) that the student will be absent
for any religious holy days.
 representing the College District at an official institutional function;
 high school dual credit students representing the independent school district at an official
institutional function; and
 military service.
Other absences, may be considered excused, with appropriate documentation, at the discretion of the
faculty member.
Adding / Dropping Courses:
Adding: No courses may be added later than the first week of a regular semester. A student adding
the course must make up the work missed within two weeks after a course is added.
Dropping: Students may drop, or withdraw from, courses by notifying Admissions and Records in
person or in writing. The official drop date for a regular semester is the Friday of the 12th week of that
semester. A student who drops on or before the official drop date may receive a grade of W or Q. A
student who drops after the official drop date will receive a grade of QF. If the student’s work was
passing at the time of withdrawal, he or she may petition the instructor to file a grade change from QF
to Q. Students may not drop or be dropped from classes once the final examination period begins.
Last day for students to drop classes with a Q for Fall 2012 semester is November 16, 2012.
Scholastic Integrity: Blinn instructors are responsible for maintaining scholastic integrity by refusing
to tolerate any form of scholastic dishonesty. As academic honesty is stressed in all classes, there is no
distinction between intentional and unintentional plagiarism. According to the Blinn College Student
Handbook, [www.blinn.edu/student%20handbook.pdf] violations of the Scholastic Integrity Policy
“shall include, but not be limited to, cheating on a test, plagiarism, and collusion.” This handbook
defines “plagiarism” as “the appropriating, buying, receiving as a gift, or obtaining by any means
another’s work and the unacknowledged submission or incorporation of it in one’s own written
work.” Blinn College stipulates that “collusion” is the “unauthorized collaboration with another
person in preparing written work for fulfillment of course requirements.” Violations of the Scholastic
Integrity Policy may result in a “penalty ranging from a grade of zero on the assignment/examination
up to and including the imposition of an F for the entire course.” Any student accused of scholastic
dishonesty is entitled to due process as outlined in Blinn College Board Policy FLB (Local). It is critical
that written documentation be maintained at each level throughout the process.
Disability Accommodations: Blinn College is dedicated to providing the least restrictive learning
environment for all students. Support services for students with documented disabilities are provided
on an individual basis, upon request. Services are not retroactive; they must be requested early in the
semester. Requests for services should be made directly to the Office of Disability Services serving the
campus of your choice. For the Bryan campus, the Office of Disability Services (Administration
Building) can be reached at (979)209-7251. Additional information can be found at
www.blinn.edu/disability/index.html. Students are encouraged to contact this office as early as possible
to initiate services. The student must then discuss requested accommodations with the instructor.
Accomodations are not retroactive.
Final Grade Appeal: If a student wishes to appeal a final grade in a course, Blinn College Board Policy
FLDB (Local), Course Grade Complaints, outlines the timeline for the appeal and the four steps in the
appeal. This policy is located in the Blinn College Student Handbook,
www.blinn.edu/student%handbook.pdf
Personal Electronic Devices: All the functions of all personal electronic devices designed for
communication and/or entertainment (cell phones, pagers, beepers, iPods, and similar devices) must be
turned off and kept out of sight in all Blinn College classrooms and associated laboratories. Any
noncompliance with this policy will be addressed in accordance with the Blinn College civility policy
(Administrative Policy). Additionally, any communication understood by the instructor to be in the
nature of cheating will have consequences in accordance with the Blinn College policy section regarding
academic dishonesty. Students exempted from this policy include active members of firefighting
organizations, emergency medical services organizations, commissioned police officers, on-call employees
of any political subdivision of the state of Texas, or agencies of the federal government. Exempted students
are expected to set the emergency-use devices on silent or vibrate mode only. Any student violating this
policy shall be subject to discipline, including suspension, in accordance with Student Handbook.
Incomplete Grade: A grade of “I” may be given only in emergencies, such as the serious illness of the
student or a close family member. This grade is not for students who fall behind in their work. To
receive a grade of incomplete the student must have satisfactorily completed all but one or two of the
final requirements of the course. The instructor and student must agree on this grade before it can be
assigned, then a course completion contract must be signed by student, instructor, and division chair.
All work must be made up within 90 days of signing the course completion contract, or zeroes will be
assigned for the uncompleted work.
Textbooks: The assigned textbooks are essential for your learning, especially in classes focusing on the
study of the written word. You must provide yourself with the books from the very beginning of the
semester. You are required to bring the textbook with you every day unless otherwise notified. You
may not share the textbook during class or use photocopied pages instead of the book.
Student e-mail accounts: Every Blinn College student is assigned an email account to facilitate official
College correspondence. Students must activate their accounts initially through the Student E-mail
Accounts link at the Blinn home page. Students need to check their Blinn accounts regularly for
important communications, including excessive absence reports and emergency announcements.
NO FOOD OR DRINK, PETS, OR SMALL CHILDREN ALLOWED IN BLINN
COLLEGE CLASSROOMS. VISITORS WILL NOT BE ALLOWED IN CLASS
WITHOUT THE PRIOR CONSENT OF THE INSTRUCTOR.
Humanities Division Policies:
Mid-term grades: Although not required by Blinn College, this Division requires that all instructors
inform their students in writing of their standing at mid-term of each semester, including summer
semesters. Accordingly, you will be notified at mid-term of your grades, and if appropriate, advised
how to improve your performance.
20 % Rule: Students who miss over 20 percent of the coursework due to absences, excused or
unexcused, will not be allowed to make up the work. They miss out on too much of the materials/skills
taught to successfully make up missed work. Even though students may keep up on the assigned
reading, there is no way to make up missed lectures, class discussions, group work, etc., all very
important and necessary methods of learning the skills required for this course.
Medical Excuses: Students must inform their doctors’ offices or clinics that their instructor might
call to verify a medical excuse. If the appointment cannot be verified, the excuse will not be
accepted. Falsifying such documents is prohibited under the Blinn College Discipline Code.
Penalties for violating this code can include measures such as suspension or permanent expulsion
from the College. Students who do not see a doctor may also see the Blinn College nurse at the Health
Clinic (Science Building, 209-7269) who can write notes for them to verify their illness.
Instructor/Course Policies:
Exams will have three parts: written (based on texts and lectures), receptive (teacher will sign material
and you will write down the correct answers), and expressive (you and/or a partner will be signing an
assigned dialogue or demonstrate it in front of instructor).
If you are absent more than 4 times, you will be dropped from my class automatically. There is no way
you can get back into my class. Be aware of that!
Make-up work/exams will only be allowed in cases of dire emergency in case of death in the family or
emergency surgery only. A note from the doctor will be needed as soon as the student returns to class with
days student is absent. Religious/Holy Days and Blinn sanctioned trips with appropriate documentation
presented ahead of time will be excused. Student is required to meet with the instructor to establish date to
make-up work or exams. Your make-up grade will be docked 25 points automatically from the grade you
earned on make-up assignments based on the two cases mentioned above. Do NOT schedule doctor or
dental appointments DURING my class times! Make-up work need to be turned in a week after you return
to class. If you turn it in after one week has passed, it will not be accepted!
Students who miss class are responsible for finding out the assignments missed from other classmates.
PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE INSTRUCTOR FOR ASSIGNMENTS. IT IS ON YOUR
SYLLABUS! It is necessary to get some email addresses and phone numbers from some of your
classmates for this purpose in case you are absent.
Familiarize yourself with the texts, the videotape, and your classmates. I suggest you review your units
before, during, and after they are assigned. Also, it is a good idea to team up with some of your
classmates to practice what you are learning. Fingerspell every word you see! Use every sign you
know! Practice, practice, practice!!!
AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE I
SGNL 1401-300/327/329
Robyn J. Marcak
Please read and sign:
I have received the course syllabus and grading policy for the American Sign Language I course. The
handout has been explained to me and I understand that I need to keep it all semester and refer to it for my
questions about the course. I understand that Robyn J. Marcak is available to answer questions not
addressed in the handout.
Name (please print legibly) ________________________________________________
Signature ______________________________________________
Date __________________________________