Members of the public are encouraged to give the gift of language this festive season.
A non-profit company, DEAFinition, which provides a range of services and funding opportunities to promote equal access for the deaf community of South Africa recently launched an online course.
The course offers a basic introduction to South African Sign Language (SASL) at a nominal cost of only R250 per person.
“The training is self-paced, allowing you to work through the content at your leisure. The link to the training is available for a month from the date of purchase and in the conclusion, you are able to download a certificate of completion. This course is aimed at anyone who is interested in learning more about the deaf community, their culture, and SASL signs to support everyday conversations,” explained Shubnum Nabbi-Maharaj, DEAFinition director.
The course was created by eDEAF, a proudly deaf-led organisation that offers training courses and learnership programmes to empower deaf communities for business. The SASL online course is aimed at people aged 16 years and older and consists of six, easy-to-navigate modules and a short completion exam. It is available through the DEAFintion website: www.deafinition.co.za
“People are welcome to purchase a course for themselves or give the course as a gift to someone else,” added Nabbi-Maharaj.
DEAFinition has also been instrumental in the development of an easily accessible SASL App that was officially launched in September. The SASL App is free and is available to download via Google Play and The App Store.
“The goal of this App is to bridge the communication gap between deaf and the hearing by allowing people to simply search for a word or specific phrase on any mobile device that has the free App installed,” she explained.
She said the deaf community is one of the most marginalised groups in South Africa considering that they cannot communicate freely with the hearing world. “Let’s collectively strive toward eliminating communication barriers and consider giving the gift of language this festive season.”
