And no, I won't be translating the news on TV. People get really confused with what I'm about to go study and what I will be after I'm done with school, even my mom seemed to have no idea. So I thought I would clear things up a little bit and explain what I will be studying for the next 3 years.
The title in Finnish is "viittomakielen ohjaaja" which translates to sign language instructor. So no, I won't be a interpreter. They are two different careers and you study them in different schools. For example, if I wanted to be a sign language interpreter and somehow got into a school to study for it, I'd probably stay in Helsinki but I don't. I'm very interested in sign language but I never saw myself as a interpreter.
What is this sign language instructor then? Well, obviously I'm still not fully aware as I'm not in the school but I will try to explain it as well as I can. I'll correct myself if I'm wrong about anything in the future :D
A sign language instructor can work with kids, elders and basically anyone between. The work in educational and assistance assignments in places like schools, day cares, camps, service homes, courses, morning and afternoon activities for schoolchildren... You get the point. A sign language instructor can also be a personal assistant.
Sign language instructors can instruct and assist deaf people, those with visual or hearing impairments or both, deaf-blind people and developmentally handicapped clients as well as clients with specific language impairments. Because of this they're not only familiar with Finnish sign language but also sign-based communication methods (like signed speech, sign supported speech or signing key words),
augmentative and alternative communication methods (like gestures, pictures, drawings and objects), and plain spoken language.
So I hope that cleared up things a little bit!
See you soon!
~Susanna
No comments:
Post a Comment