Some 400 new British Sign Language (BSL) signs have been developed for technical science and environmental terms and Doncaster teacher, Rebecah Taylor, is featured in the online glossary.
Rebecah, a teacher at Doncaster School for the Deaf is proud to have worked with the Royal Society and the Scottish Sensory Centre to showcase the new signs.
Rebecah said: “It was fantastic to be part of this groundbreaking project and wonderful to see that 400 new signs have been introduced. I was part of a team who developed, agreed, and filmed the signs for the new glossary.
“The Royal Society, in collaboration with the Scottish Sensory Centre, has introduced a series of webinars aimed at equipping BSL interpreters with the newly developed signs, the first is taking place on May 29.
“These signs, covering a broad spectrum from ‘global warming’ to ‘vaccine,’ aim to bridge the gap in scientific vocabulary available in British Sign Language.”
Rebecah features in several of the instructional videos, signing away scientific jargon with precision and clarity. These videos are part of the BSL Jargon series by the Scottish Sensory Centre.
The glossary, developed from terms in the GCSE, A level and degree syllabi, underwent review by Deaf teams of teachers and researchers who specialise in the areas before being transformed into signs.
“The release of these 400 signs marks a significant milestone, furthering the mission of accessibility and inclusivity in scientific education,” added Rebecah.
To view the glossary visit www.ssc.education.ed.ac.uk/BSL/environmenthome.html