‘It will make more people feel included if they can talk to them in their first language’: The experience of university students with an intellectual disability engaging in a formal Irish Sign Language Course

Abstract

Accessible Summary Learning a second language can provide people with more opportunities to be included in society. For example, they could have more opportunities for employment, social activities and travel. However, people with intellectual disabilities are typically not given the opportunity to learn a second language because people think they do not have the ability to learn more than one language. This study looked at the experiences of university students with intellectual disabilities who took part in an Irish Sign Language course. The study used a focus group (a group interview) to speak to six university students with intellectual disabilities and found that students spoke about their experience with learning Irish Sign Language, the class design and the importance of learning Irish Sign Language. This study showed that people with intellectual disabilities critically reflected on their experience of learning a second language. More research is needed to see if this finding is common amongst individuals with intellectual disabilities. AbstractBackgroundOpportunities for people with intellectual disabilities to become bi/multilingual tend not to be widely available despite demonstrated linguistic and extralinguistic advantages associated with an ability to use more than one language. This article focuses on the learning experiences of students with intellectual disabilities in learning Irish Sign Language (ISL) as part of a university course tailored for students with intellectual disabilities.MethodsThe sample consisted of six adults with intellectual disabilities who were enrolled in a full‐time university programme in Ireland. Students were required to take a 12‐week course entitled Language and Society, which included ISL lab sessions. A focus group was conducted asking questions that focused on the students’ experience of taking part in a formalided ISL class.FindingsThree themes were generated in the analysis of the data: learning ISL, class design and implications of taking an ISL course. Findings showed that participants reflected critically on their learning experiences, their expectations of learning ISL, class content and social implications of learning ISL.ConclusionThis study demonstrates the potential of people with intellectual disabilities to be able to critically engage in second language learning.