LOS ALAMITOS, Calif. — Today, over 1,000 public high schools offer an American Sign Language course, educating around 107,060 college students nationwide. All universities in California admit ASL as a foreign language credit; however, many colleges in the United States do not accept it as a foreign language or provide ASL classes. From 2012-2020, ASL interpreter employability in the U.S. was expected to increase by 46%, creating 29,300 more jobs. Still, there is a lack of ASL courses offered in high schools. 

Throughout the world, there have been many different sign languages over time. According to the United Nations, there are around 300 different sign languages, with more than 7 million deaf people worldwide. Sign language has existed for as long as deaf people have, but the first record of it was in the 17th century.

According to the State of Rhode Island, ASL is used by half a million people, primarily in the U.S. and Canada, even in parts of West Africa and regions in Southeastern Asia. The language, created by Thomas Gallaudet, is primarily influenced by Old French Sign Language and village and home sign languages. 

In 1817, the American School for the Deaf, the first school dedicated to educating the deaf, opened in West Hartford, Connecticut. Around 50 years later, Gallaudet University opened and later became the site for the Deaf President Now movement, a group of student-led protesters fighting for more deaf representation in their leadership. 

Deaf and hard-of-hearing people persevere in a world that refuses to accommodate them. Solidarity within the deaf community is formed through the shared experience of oppression. Deaf culture is more than multiple people using the same language; it is about millions sharing their experiences and fostering a sense of connection and camaraderie.

According to ASL Deafined, in 1986, only 1% of high schools in the U.S. offered ASL classes for foreign language credit, increasing to 19.4% shown in a study by Gallaudet University in 2013.

At Los Alamitos High School, Ms. Troutman teaches ASL II and III.

“(Students) should have the option to take ASL over taking Spanish, French (or) Japanese (if) they want to have a weighted GPA or take an AP test,” Ms. Troutman said. 

Although LAHS offers ASL 1-4 classes, there is no AP course. The three main languages — Japanese, Spanish and French — offer AP courses once the first four levels are completed. Many students use an AP language course to boost their GPA with a weighted class.

“I’ve had students who say they did not take ASL because there was not an AP option,” Ms. Bennett, another ASL I and IV teacher at LAHS, said.

The ASL Honors Society at LAHS meets weekly to discuss current ASL news, socialize and find an inclusive and welcoming community for people passionate about ASL. During one of the meetings, members alerted others about local events for deaf people and ASL students and planned events at the high school. To the students in the ASL Honors Society, ASL is more than a language. 

“I know friends who want to (pursue) interpreting or be an ASL teacher, and (the class) would be helpful for people who want to do that,” an ASL Honors Society member said. 

Many students, especially those interested in pursuing a career studying ASL, would benefit from taking an AP ASL course in high school. Even students not planning to pursue an ASL career could be incentivized to increase their GPA and demonstrate dedication to their language to colleges. 

Students who want to go into an ASL-related profession struggle due to the lack of resources high schools and colleges offer. Whether they want to pursue a career in ASL or continue learning about a subject they are passionate about, students should have the option to learn a language, discover an understanding community and educate themselves about the deaf community.