INTRODUCTION
This Ugandan Sign Language material will provide students, teachers and parents with signs of the daily life in the classroom, at home and in the community.
Many thanks to all the students and teachers of the Uganda School for the Deaf for their active participation during this educational project, proving us with this valuable information.
Communication is a human need. It is fundamental to our existence as social beings, helping us sharing ideas and information, building relationships, growing social-emotional skills, getting access to education and helping us solve problems. Communication makes our learning process more enjoyable and motivating. It is the essence of life, allowing us to express and understand our feelings and thoughts and living an emotional healthy and fulfilled life.
Nadine Khayal
Messages from the Uganda School for the Deaf
My name is Juliet Mary Tumuhairwe and I am the Headteacher of the Uganda School for the Deaf. I have been working in the educational field for 38 years.
Learning Sign Language is important for many reasons. Sign Language can help us communicate with the Deaf community and improve communication between parents and children. It creates social interaction between Hearing and Deaf. Children and their families who are familiar with Sign Language will experience a relief of stress. Parents and children can express themselves better and will get to know each other, which builds a stronger love and unity. Being familiar with Sign Language, will also help parents in supporting their child in their educational journey. Connecting with your deaf child is important, understanding your child’s wishes, needs and anxieties. Communicating with your deaf child will also help you understand their perspective of life.
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Juliet Mary Tumuhairwe
My name is Othieno Daniel Kirya and I am a teacher at the Uganda School for the Deaf. I completed a Special Education Needs Training in 1995-1997 at the Uganda National Institute for Special Needs in Kyambogo, which is now a university. I have taught all age groups of deaf children and participated in many workshops in the field of Special Needs Education. At the Uganda School for the Deaf, we teach following the National Curriculum. In 1997, the first P.7 class completed their Primary Leaving National Examination. Since then, a number of students have qualified and proceeded their education in Wakiso Secondary School for the Deaf as well as in Mbale School for the Deaf.
A number of students have joined the university Kyambogo and other universities. I have enjoyed my teaching career but also witnessed a lot of challenges our deaf students are facing. Many students are lacking knowledge of proper Ugandan Sign Language. What is missing, is a curriculum, which accommodates the needs of deaf students. During lesson at school, the emphasis is Sign Language and yet students have to complete the National Primary/Secondary/Tertiary Examination set by UNEB, which is set in spoken English language.
The school is developing Sign Language materials to be used by teachers, parents, children and any other interested person. We believe that this Sign Language materials will aid deaf learning. Hopefully, this project will add on what other people have already done, seeing positive results with our students in the near future.
Soon, I will retire, and my wish is that Deaf education continues to improve further and further. I also hope that the Ministry of Education and Sports will soon develop a curriculum which accommodates the needs of deaf students with the hope that deaf students get the chance to acquire knowledge and skills that will allow them to reach their full potential and become effective and happy members of our society.
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Othieno Daniel Kirya
As a Special Needs Teacher and a Community Development Worker, I am privileged to work with children with learning and developmental needs. I particularly want to pay special tribute to Children with Hearing Impairment from Uganda School for the Deaf and my Deaf colleagues for being part of my professional journey, experience, qualification, and being champions in this course.
Special Needs Education in our country is rooted to the efforts of the colonial administration, traditional leaders, parents’ Societies/Associations and the government of the Republic of Uganda (1995 Constitution).
This write-up draws your attention to the Education of Deaf people in our country. Deaf Education country wide is affected by curriculum inadequacies. It is for this reason that we have taken it worthy coming up with new innovations of developing interactive learning materials in supporting the existing learning gaps in the ordinary primary schools’ curriculum. The materials can also be of use to parents and interested person(s) in advancing the use of Ugandan Sign Language in curriculum studies and our local communities.
If you enjoy to learn Sign Language, please consider supporting the development and leaving a comment or recommendation.
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Sam Okiring.
My name is Nakaggwa Priscilla and I teach the P.1 class at the Uganda School for the Deaf. I am hard of hearing and proud of who I am. I want to express my gratitude to God and my family for helping me to pursue my studies of Early Childhood Development Teaching.
When I was 7 years old, my parents noticed that something was wrong with my ears. They took me an audiologist to have my hearing tested. The audiologist diagnosed Hearing Loss. Since then, I learned a lot about the deaf culture and I felt drawn to it. My family has been very supportive throughout my hearing loss journey. They registered me at the Uganda School for the Deaf. I was anxious and excited at the same time when I stepped into school. My parents showed me love and care, which has giving me strength.
I completed my P.L.E. with a good grade, joined High School in Wakiso Secondary School for the Deaf from S.1-S.6. Then I continued my studies at the Buganda Royal Institute where I received my Early Childhood Development Teaching Diploma degree. This time was genuinely transformative for me. I am the only person in my family who is Hard of Hearing. I use spoken Luganda and English to communicate with them. I am grateful to my parents for not leaving me behind. They took good care of me. I also wish to send my gratitude to Teacher Daniel, Teacher Elizabeth, Teacher Akello who taught me during my Primary Education at the Uganda School for the Deaf, as well as Madam Juliet Mary for always encouraged me. I was given such an amazing opportunity. May the good Lord richly bless them always.
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Nakaggwa Priscilla