Mr Patsy McGlone (Mid Ulster): To ask the Minister of Education to detail any assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of increasing opportunities for pupils to learn Sign Language as part of the school curriculum.
Minister of Education: My department recognises the benefits of learning Sign Language, including enhancing communication and literacy skills, promoting inclusion and accessibility and increasing awareness and understanding of Deaf culture.
Schools already have flexibility within the curriculum to include British Sign Language (BSL), Irish Sign Language (ISL) and Makaton as part of their curriculum provision.
Learning Sign Language can broaden pupils’ awareness of different forms of communication and support greater understanding of the Deaf community.
Work on the development of a GCSE in British Sign Language is progressing in England. Northern Ireland operates an open qualifications market and, should such a qualification become available in England, it may be accredited for use in Northern Ireland.
ENDS
