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Deaf Role Model Guide: From the Deaf for the Deaf (Malta)


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About This Course

The Deaf Role Model Guide: From Deaf for Deaf has become a tool for training Deaf adults as professionals to support and empower hearing and Deaf adults (professionals, family members, colleagues) to work and collaborate with Deaf people from the early years of life through adulthood.

The Guide contains adequate personal experience information on the developmental, emotional, social and language needs of Deaf people. The Guide is intended for Deaf adults, members of the Deaf community who are to be trained as Deaf Role Models to support other Deaf adults with their paradigm.

It intends to provide practical knowledge to Deaf people to advance their professional and personal lives.

The guide will contains two sections which will cover the main topics:


Collaboration with the community.


Learning can be enriched through the full inclusion of community members. Deaf Role Models from the Deaf community brought their expertise and perspectives from their lives and experiences to enhance the learning of members of the Deaf World.

It is especially helpful to collaborate and connect with experts from the community when learning about specific cultural contexts to avoid offending or misrepresenting Deaf culture. Collaboration among community members enhances relational learning. Thus, those involved in the training process learn from each other through the sharing of their experience and ideas and they create the learning - teaching material, together.


Considering Diversity

The training resources reflect sensitivity to diversity and incorporate positive role representations. The content meets the diverse social and communication needs of adults, enhancing social participation and inclusion. The Guide gives voice to all members of the Deaf community.

Features of the Teachers Guide

The guide will contains two sections which will cover the main topics:

  1. The Theory of Identities: Deaf people as role models
  2. The stories of Role Models

The guide includes information on topics about the Deaf World and the Hearing World:
  • The hearing adults needs and difficulties, the emotional stages they go throw dealing with deafness
  • The developmental cognitive, social and linguistic characteristic/skills of deaf people,
  • Deaf adults developing communication skills,
  • The Deaf Community
  • Relationships between the deaf world and the hearing world
  • Inclusion and cultural exchange in both worlds

Requirements

No prior knowledge of Deafness, Deaf Role Models and Sign Language is required. Join us and become part of the Sign Links chain.

Course Staff

Course Staff Image #1

Annabelle Xerri

Annabelle Xerri graduated with a Bachelor in Communications and Psychology and with a Master of Arts in Disability Studies at the University of Malta. She became a Deaf activist in 2013 when she met the Deaf community for the first time and began to learn Maltese Sign Language. She became a member of the board of the Deaf People Association almost immediately and is currently the Association's President. She also uses social media consistently to raise awareness about the Deaf via a social media platform called A Silent World. She participated in discussions regarding the Maltese Sign Language Law and was appointed Chairperson of the Maltese Sign Language Council set up by ACT XVII.

Course Staff Image #2

Sharon Misfud

Course Staff Image #2

Maris Bonnici

Course Staff Image #2

Eleanor Grech

Monitoring and participation

The course is FREE for everyone to attend and with your participation you get access to all course materials (videos, texts, articles, exercises and assignments).

Confirmation of participation and attendance

On successful completion of the program, you will receive a certificate of attendance. Successful completion means completion of all course assessment questions and your final grade point average must be greater than or equal to 60%.

Confirmation of participation and attendance


On successful completion of the program, you will receive a certificate of attendance. Successful completion means completion of all course requirements of independent study and your final involvement average must be greater than or equal to 60%.

The independent study requirement is at least one of the following: The participation in the Internship Workshops, Signing Books and materials for parents, the Final Conference, the development of the “Became a Deaf Role Model too!” or field work of your choice that is agreed with the course staff.

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