This Week’s Focus

This past week I feel I have grown leaps and bounds in my ASL vocabulary and ability to have introductory conversation in ASL. We focused on learning classroom objects and actions, and it feels so rewarding being able to show what I am learning.

For example, “I am learning ASL online at Queer ASL”, as seen in my video.

ASL and AI

Over the past couple of weeks, our coursework has focused on AI systems and their use in education. I found myself wondering what type of AI technologies are being applied to ASL, as well as the potential benefits and risks of these technologies. AI is currently being used in ASL for sign language recognition, translation, and generation, with goals of reducing communication barriers and improving accessibility. For examples, AI tools can interpret ASL when a human interpreter is unavailable, helping create more inclusive spaces. However, as with many AI technologies, significant issues arise. Many datasets fail to accurately represent Deaf users, lack proper linguistic grounding, and are built on flawed models. The most concerning issue mirrors the broader societal problem: research about Deaf communities is often conducted without their meaningful involvement. Much of sign language AI research is dominated by hearing non-signing research and lacks Deaf-led perspectives. As highlighted in, Systemic Biases in Sign Language AI Research: A Deaf-Led Call to Reevaluate Research Agendas by Desai et al., it is essential that Deaf researchers are given space to lead conversations and research about sign language AI.

As with much of my research surrounding AI, I can see the benefits and good intentions behind these technologies, yet it is hard to ignore the bias, both in the data and the people leading this technology and research. As someone learning ASL, I do not think I will explore ways in which I could learn ASL from AI. I believe it is important to learn ASL directly from the Deaf community, and as I learnt in my course, it is important to recognize that learning ASL outside of this context can take jobs away from Deaf individual’s. It feels very important to learn from peoples lived experiences.

Favourite Sign of the Week

Dance

Next Week

We will be learning activities, animals and how to express if we like, love or dislike something. My goal this week is to set aside time each night to practice my vocabulary in order to feel more confident in class.