Deaf people cannot speak, communicate, and perceive the world fully. They are limited in their perception: vision and sensation are the only primary channels for them to obtain information about the world. However, one of the main problems is the absence of language, which is crucial for developing higher cognitive skills. However, sign language helps maintain and develop the cognitive abilities of deaf people; in that way, they must be taught sign language.
Language deprivation is a significant danger for deaf people: it results from the absence of language learning during childhood. Imagine that the child is growing up in wild conditions, where they cannot hear any speech, any word of mouth. This is what happens to those deaf children who have not learned sign language when they are primarily open to this (N. K. Caselli et al., 2020). All children have increased neurological sensitivity to language learning, which is why they learn languages easier than older people. If they do not learn a language in this period, their cognitive abilities become impaired, not only memory but also the ability to form conscious thoughts. They become more like animals, not humans; this may sound dreadful, but this is the reality of kids who cannot think consciously and memorize what they see. If deaf child is not taught sign language, they must rely only on their vision and fundamental patterns, such as objects’ forms, colors, and quantities. They are similar, in that way, to primitive people who were not able to speak.
Deaf people have weaker memory due to their inability to communicate using ordinary language. Teaching sign language from childhood may help prevent these problems and restore normal memory development. However, their parents, especially those who are hearing, usually have low proficiency in sign language (Bansal et al., 2021). Sometimes they are not bothered to teach their kid sign language, but the consequences of such inactivity are awful. Their working memory becomes weaker, and they cannot operate by word constructions that are accessible to their hearing mates. Compare, thus, the opportunities for such deaf people when they become teens and adults: they will be much worse than those for hearing people. Deaf person is limited not only in their perception but in their language and cognitive abilities; however, this issue may be solved by teaching American Sign Language from childhood.
Consider that American Sign Language is essential for deaf people: probably, even the most necessary skill at all. It allows them to close the gap of language ignorance and learn how to speak even without the ability to hear and produce conscious voices. This is why systems that help deaf children to learn American Sign language are in demand: an example is CopyCat, a sign language recognition system that is easily managed via its visual interface (N. K. Caselli et al., 2020). When deaf children start to learn sign language in early childhood, they have a vocabulary comparable to hearing children (N. Caselli et al., 2021). Thus, it solves all cognitive problems which threaten deaf children, enabling them to grow up as fully conscious human beings with opportunities equal to those of hearing ones.
To conclude, I would emphasize the necessity of American Sign Language development and distribution: without that, our deaf children are fated on ignorance and even semi-wildness. Language is a crucial element of humanity; it is necessary for brain development, as neither memory nor higher brain functions can work without it. Sign language closes the gap of language ignorance, enabling deaf people to learn how to speak and form conscious thoughts. American Sign Language is crucial for the United States deaf community, as it helps them avoid language deprivation and master conscious thinking.
References
Bansal, D., Ravi, P., So, M., Agrawal, P., Chadha, I., Murugappan, G., & Duke, C. (2021). CopyCat: Using sign language recognition to help deaf children acquire language skills.Extended Abstracts of the 2021 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems.
Caselli, N. K., Hall, W. C., & Henner, J. (2020). American sign language interpreters in public schools: An illusion of inclusion that perpetuates language deprivation. Maternal and Child Health Journal, 24(11), 1323–1329.
Caselli, N., Pyers, J., & Lieberman, A. M. (2021). Deaf children of hearing parents have age-level vocabulary growth when exposed to American Sign Language by 6 months of age. The Journal of Pediatrics, 232, 229–236.