NORTHERN IRELAND International work needs both simplicity and details :-)

[Valerie Sutton]

SignWriting List
November 5, 2005

Shane Gilchrist O hEorpa wrote:
> excellent - we didnt want to use the longer complicated stuff - we are
> meant to use signwriting NOT the notation system - SignWriting can be
> used as a notation system shall we want to research signed languages -
> but for everyday use, its important to have signwriting (short, fast
> and quick) - i always says that signwriting is totally useless if you
> dont know the signed language itself FIRST.thank you for clarifying  
> it :-)


Hello Shane and Everyone!
I am so glad you brought this up. It is important, if you are  
planning to have another SignWriting Symposium in Europe, to be open  
to BOTH SignWriting and Movement Writing. Perhaps in future  
Symposiums, a special workshop can be planned specifically on how to  
write generic movement...Movement Writing...so that the symbols can  
be applied to signed languages you do not know...

Movement Writing is a blessing because it makes it possible for us to  
write signed languages we do not know, and then gives a foundation  
for those who use that signed language, so they can simplify it later...

So it is important to keep openminded about writing detailed writing  
too...

In fact, just as you need International interpreters at the European  
Symposiums, you also need a workshop on Movement Writing, because it  
is like International writing...it crosses over borders and writes  
the body as it looks in real life, without assuming knowledge of any  
one signed language...and so it may be the answer to international  
written sign communication...

Let me tell you my experiences with the Deaf Action Committee here in  
the US...they worked as our Deaf staff members in the 1990's and we  
had around 20 Deaf people in and out...around 10 at a time but they  
fluctuated...and they had a profound influence on the way I write,  
and all those spelling rules - ha!!

Anyway...

Within one group of Deaf people...let us imagine 20 Deaf people from  
Northern Ireland...I bet you will find around 7 out of 20, who are  
interested in writing more detail, and others prefer the simpler  
writing...and neither is wrong...people deserve a chance to discuss  
it and use it as they wish...

So I am happy to teach you shorter ways to write, but meanwhile, that  
is why I am so glad that you have teachers to turn to, in Europe, who  
know the more international Movement Writing, such as Stefan and  
Ingvild...so your next Symposium can be enhanced by that...maybe have  
a workshop on writing specific signed languages, and also a workshop  
on writing general body movement for transcribing videos etc, of  
storytelling, the requires gesture and mime...take a look at some of  
these symbols from Movement Writing...they are used all the time to  
write videos of storytelling...and will be useful for writing  
Northern Ireland storytelling too...but the symbols come from  
Movement Writing...

Meanwhile, look next message, and I will continue to teach you how to  
write the numbers in Northern Ireland Sign Language...Val ;-)



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