Course Information

Course Numbers and Descriptions

Virtual Zoom classes are offered on Tuesdays. In-Person classes are at TSD on Thursdays. Classes meet once a week.

Virtual Course Numbers

101-V  1st Semester Beginners: ASL & CASE
201-V  2nd Semester Beginners: ASL & CASE

In-Person Course Numbers (not all are offered):

101 – 1st Semester Beginners:American Sign Language & Conceptually Accurate Signed English (ASL & CASE)
201 – 2nd Semester Beginners: ASL & CASE
301 – 1st Semester Intermediate: ASL & CASE
401 – 2nd Semester Intermediate: ASL & CASE
501/601 – Advanced: ASL
701 – Deaf Culture
801 – Conversational Sign Language
1001 – Vocabulary Building for Interpreter Trainees
1101 – Voice-to-Sign Interpreting
1101/1201 – Expressive and Receptive Interpreting
1201 – Sign-to-Voice Interpreting
1301 – Ethical Decision Making for Interpreters


Austin Sign Language School (ASLS)
Virtual Course Descriptions

101-V  1st Semester Beginners: ASL & CASE – VIRTUAL
Course covers Chapters 1-6 of textbook.  Emphasis on beginning vocabulary and fingerspelling.  Vocabulary is given in American Sign Language (ASL) and Conceptually Accurate Signed English (CASE). Offered Virtually on Zoom on Tuesdays  5:30-7:00 pm Spring 2024

201-V  2nd Semester Beginners: ASL & CASE – VIRTUAL
Course covers Chapters 6-11 of textbook.  Emphasis on vocabulary and fingerspelling.  Vocabulary is given in American Sign Language (ASL) and Conceptually Accurate Signed English (CASE).  Course 101 or 101-V is a prerequisite for Course 201-V. Offered Virtually on Zoom on Tuesdays 7:15-8:45 pm Spring 2024

In-Person Course Descriptions (not all are offered):

101-1st Semester Beginners: ASL & CASE
Textbook-“A Basic Course in American Sign Language”
1st Semester Beginners: Course covers Chapters 1-6 textbook. Emphasis is on vocabulary and fingerspelling. Vocabulary is given in American Sign Language (ASL) and Conceptually Accurate Signed English (CASE). Offered in-Person at TSD on Thursdays 5:30-7:00 pm and 7:15-8:45 pm

201-2nd Semester Beginners: ASL & CASE
Textbook-“A Basic Course in American Sign Language”
2nd Semester Beginners: Course covers Chapters 6-11 of the textbook. Emphasis is on grammar and vocabulary building. Vocabulary is given in American Sign Language (ASL) and Conceptually Accurate Signed English (CASE). Course 101 or 101-V is a prerequisite for Course 201. Offered in-Person at TSD on Thursdays 7:15-8:45 pm  

301-1st Semester  Intermediate ASL & CASE
Textbook-“A Basic Course in American Sign Language”
Course covers Chapters 11-17 of the textbook. Emphasis is on ASL grammar and vocabulary building. Vocabulary is given in American Sign Language and Conceptually Accurate Signed English (CASE). Offered in-Person at TSD on Thursdays 5:30-7:00 pm  

401-2nd Semester Intermediate: ASL & CASE
Textbook-“A Basic Course in American Sign Language”
Course covers Chapters 17-22 of the textbook and additional vocabulary. Emphasis is on ASL grammar and vocabulary building. Offered in-Person at TSD on Thursdays 7:15-8:45 pm  

501/601 – Advanced ASL 
No Textbook
Course covers grammar, structure, and rhetoric used in ASL.  Emphasis is on Cultural Signs, Classifiers, and Conceptually Accurate Signs. Not offered.

701-Deaf Culture
Course is an in-depth look at “Deaf Culture” from the perspective of a Deaf instructor.  Students must have intermediate level signing skills (expressive and receptive) to enroll in this course.  The resource text is “Deaf Culture: Exploring Deaf Communities in the United States” by Leigh, Andrews and Harris but it is not a required textbook. Not offered.

Classes for Advanced Signers and Interpreters:

801 – Conversational Sign Language
No Textbook
Conversational Sign Language focused on Current Events led by a Deaf Instructor. Emphasis is on expressive and receptive sign skills in ASL. Students will discuss events happening in the deaf and hearing world. Not offered.

1001-Vocabulary Building for Interpreter Trainees**
No Textbook, Vocabulary list provided
Vocabulary for interpreter trainees class covering various topics, such as medical, education, computers, sports, drug abuse , numbers, etc. Topics may change or be expanded each semester. Students will also practice basic interpreting techniques. Not offered.

1101-Voice-to-Sign Interpreting**
No Textbook
Emphasis is on expressive interpreting and transliterating skills. Topics may vary each semester. Classes will be offered at proficient interpreter level. Prerequisite interpreting skills required. (1001 is a required prerequisite which must be completed before taking this class.) Not offered.

1201-Sign-to-Voice Interpreting**
No Textbook
Emphasis is on receptive interpreting and transliterating skills. Classes offered at proficient interpreter level. (1001 is a required prerequisite which must be completed before taking this class.) Not offered.

1101/1201-Expressive and Receptive Interpreting**
No Textbook
Emphasis is on expressive and receptive interpreting and transliterating skills. Instruction is at proficient interpreter level, with practice and feedback. Topics may be changed and expanded each semester. Not offered.

1301-Ethical Decision Making for Interpreters**
Textbook – “Ethical Decision-Making: A Guided Exploration for Interpreters” by K.M. Stewart and A. Witter-Merithew. Course will cover ethics and interpreting and will offer 3.0 HHSC ODHHS CEUs for certified interpreters. HHSC ODHHS interpreter certificate recertification requires 20 hrs. of ethics training every 5 years.

Not offered. Enrollment is limited to 10 students a semester, and students are responsible for purchasing their own textbook. Registered students will be emailed instructions prior to the beginning of each semester. Students have 3 months to complete all on-line course assignments in order to earn 3.0 HHSC ODHHS Ethics CEUs.  Students must purchase their own ethics textbook for on-line course. (http://store.signmedia.com/1510.html) This book is not available from ASLS.

Students who take 1301 on-line must be familiar with technology to communicate using e-mail and discussion groups, be familiar with word processing and editing tasks, know how to create, save and upload or download a file, and have Adobe Reader.


** BEI HHSC ODHHS Interpreter Continuing Education Unit (CEU) credits approved

Location:

ASLS classes in Spring 2024 meet Virtually through Zoom on Tuesdays OR In-Person @TSD on Thursdays.

Schedule:

During the Spring 2024 semester, Virtual (V) Zoom courses 101-V and 201-V are offered on Tuesday evenings. On Thursday evenings, In-Person courses 101, 201, 301 and 401are offered at TSD. Each semester is 10 weeks.

Fees:
Tuition is $205.00 per student for the 10-week semester.

Textbooks:

Textbook for ASLS courses 101/101-V, 201/201-V , 301/301V and 401/401V is “A Basic Course in American Sign Language – Second Edition” TJ Publishers (ISBN 0-932666-42-6)

Students should get their own textbooks prior to the first class (available through Amazon or https://www.diglo.com)

Instructors:
ASLS teachers are skilled users of sign language, and many of them are native signers. A majority are deaf/hard of hearing individuals who are proficient users of American Sign Language (ASL). Many of the instructors have taught ASLS courses for a number of years. Certified, highly qualified interpreters for the deaf teach the ASLS interpreting courses.