How come Hearing people can't sign languages as good as Deaf people sign languages?

Question

I am kind little down today.
Well , let me ask you this.... I know this Hearing lady know American sign language but ....... she can't sign like Deaf people do but she is not the only one. If anyone try to be like Deaf but I automatic knew that person is not Deaf.
My question is why can't they understand deeper ASL like Deaf people do if they grew up with Deaf parents?

Answer 1

Patly because they don't have to. They are not solely dependent on sign language as a means to communicate. I know that when I use ASL and I get stuck, I fall back on signed English. When a person who is Deaf is learning ASL they don't have anything to fall back on - ASL is it.



I think you will find that people who grow up in families with people who are Deaf, whether they hear or not, are fluent in ASL.



It is rare that a person learns French and speaks & write French as well as a person born in France.



It is rare that a person learns German and speaks & writes German as well as a person born in Germany.



So likewise it is rare for a person born Deaf to learn to speak or write English as well as a person born hearing.



And for a person born hearing to learn to sign ASL as well as a person born Deaf.



I personally don't think there is anything "wrong" with the way you write English - you simply are not extremely fluent in it. I have several close friends whose first language is Italian or German - and their English writing is impeccable - but there is a certain cadence to their writing that identifies them as German or Italian native speakers.

Answer 2

While Chili's answer is decent, no one has said a real answer, which relates to how children learn languages in the first place.



Generally, there is a sensitive period, in which children can easily pick up languages. This is from birth until around age 8 or 9, even though the earlier a child has been exposed to language, the faster they will learn. After that time, you can learn some aspects of the language (which is why it is not a "critical period," meaning that if you do not learn it before that time, you can never learn it.), but can never master it like a native. There will be some subtleties and eccentricities of the language that a late-learner will not be able to pick up like a native.



To answer your question... there is no difference between deaf and hearing. What you're noticing is the difference between early-learners and late-learners. Frequently, hearing people learn ASL late, since CODA's are rare and the Deaf community is small, and people do not get exposed to ASL until after the sensitive period. Deaf people are more likely to be exposed to ASL early in life, and thus learn it with a native fluency. This is not always the case though, and there are many, many deaf people raised orally, or using cued speech or signed English, that do not achieve native fluency. One of my deaf friends complains that other Deaf people mistake him for hearing, since his family didn't sign and he wasn't in a Deaf environment until college.



It is not about first language exposure, either, as someone else said... there are many many people who are bilingual from birth and have native fluency in multiple languages.

Answer 3

For the one's who have had to learn it is basically because you forget if you don't use it.



For those who grew up with a deaf family member, etc it may be the same thing if the deaf family member was encouraged to speak more than sign.



For those who grew up with a deaf family member who they no longer see it is that they don't use it regularly. The same way very few people remember their "school languages" like French, German, Chinese etc. Once they leave school they have no use for it anymore.



You'll find that the people who use sign language on a regular basis are better than those who have learnt it but never get the chance to use it.



On the switch side though I've heard from a person I was in a Auslan (Australain Sign Language - sorry for correcting you jobees but you probably went for how the word itself sounds) it is surprising how many of the people who have regular contact with the students don't know sign language.



Another reason it is harder for hearing people to learn sign is that a hearing person tends to think in sounds whereas a person who is deaf thinks more visually and probably sees the sign when they see the word. So a hearing person has to think of the word and then think of the sign whereas a person who is deaf and has signed most of their life just have to think of the sign.

Answer 4

Many can sign just as well, if not better. People who live in households where one or more persons are deaf will know it well because they use it frequently. I only know a little sign, even though I'm deaf myself. No one in my family uses ASL and I can speak, as well as read lips.



I'm the only deaf person in my family. They know to look at me when they talk to me and to not talk too fast. Even so, I miss things. When it comes to ASL, I know the alphabet and about 50 signs. My parents didn't want me to be restricted to only using sign and since I'm capable of speech, it was best to have me learn to talk and how to read lips.



I have several non-deaf friends that sign better than any deaf person I know. It's amazing how quickly they learned it. They all have family members who are deaf and communicate by sign.



EMT

Answer 5

Interesting question. I believe the opposite to be truer. Sign Language incorporates much of the "body language" that we already express, to a greater or lesser extent, therefore, I think it is much "easier" to express. HOWEVER, to sign in the proper order, context, syntax, and rythm requires the study and practice necessary for us to communicate in an understandable fashion. Us, the hearing people, are used to the spoken word, whereas the deaf is all visual and completely bodily expressive. It also depends on the abilities of the individual, but I can see also why you say this since you are deaf, and I believe you haven't been exposed to the sounds as us, the hearing, are. Sign Language is a beautiful language in any spoken language.

Answer 6

Because most school don't teach sign language, but I have seen one school who teach Auland Australian sign to all students (hearing and deaf) in the class.

I also meet at a church youth camp some hearing young people who could sign because they were born to deaf parents.



I think because deaf people use sign language more they are better at it.



I have learned words in many spoken language which I have forgotten completely. As I don't use that language on a regular basic.

Answer 7

It's a matter of preservation. People who are deaf are usually dependent upon sign language. Those not deaf are not dependent and are therefroe lax in the use of signing. But, give credit to the people who are not deaf and make the effort to learn how to sign.

Answer 8

It's all in the senses. When you rely so much on your hearing, using your hands to sign is going to be a challenge, even when that person has learned ASL inside and out. When ASL is your main form of communication, it becomes second nature, just as hearing is second nature to those who are hearing.

Answer 9

People usually only speak their first language like a native. People can learn other languages and even become fluent in them, but usually they still won’t speak them exactly like a native would. The same goes for sign language. If it’s not the person’s first language, then they’re not going to speak it exactly like those who have it as their first language.



Hearing people don’t usually have sign language as their first language, so they don’t sign like deaf people who have sign language as their first language.

Answer 10

Because it is a second language for them.



Basically second languages are not going to be as "smooth" as the primary language.



I have seen a few exceptions to this, I feel.



There is a person in your Hall who is hearing, and he does an outstanding job of signing. You could almost figure out what he was saying from the "gesturing" he does with the signing. He is a joy to watch. So animated! (I have seen him at assemblies)

Answer 11

Probully because she didnt have deaf friends and go to a deaf school to learn to sign fast, and more better then those who are deaf and have learn to sign faster with deaf people like them...



im guessing that from what ive learned from ASL classes but idk.

Answer 12

same reason deaf people cant hear as good as hearing people