American Sign Language

American Sign Language (ASL)
Posted on 11/26/2019
Hoosic Valley students have the opportunity to learn Sign Language through the Distance Learning Network, DL for short. Mrs Scharf is our ASL teacher this year. She is from Malone and instructs by video conferencing with Hoosic Valley and two other districts. For some of our ASL students this is their second year of ASL.

Students have a variety of reasons for taking ASL, some plan on going into that profession, for some it was recommended by a friend and some are looking for something to do that is more interesting than study hall. All valid reasons and from observing just one class they are learning more than sign language. DL offers some unique challenges and opportunities that students are going to encounter in college and the workplace. It’s hosted in Malone and they have alot more snow days than us! Scheduling between multiple schools is quite a challenge and the heavy reliance on technology requires more patience on some days than most, you’ve got to be able to filter out the background noises and focus on the lesson. On the plus side, our students enjoy meeting new students from other districts. Our ASL II students have had colleges remark on their ASL coursework (the motivation for extra coursework is rewarded) and have even applied what they have learned in their after school jobs. The DL classes require a certain amount of independence and self motivation on the students part. It’s easy to become distracted and stray off course when the teacher’s “not in the room.” DL students develop the maturity and motivation to become remote learners, a skill they will need in today's high-tech global society.

View photos and videos from Mrs. Scharf’s ASL I & II DL Classes

The DL program allows our students to receive additional classes that we are not able to offer. We also receive Vet Science from Schoharie and Criminal Justice from Coxsacki-Athens. On the flip side, Mr. Ryan teaches A&P and Computer Science through the DL Network. These classes are transmitted to Columbia and Voorheesville. In the Spring, Mr. Viggiano will be broadcasting his Wellness and Nutrition course to Columbia. We coordinate with the Northeastern Regional Information Center (NERIC) and twenty-eight other area schools to schedule our Distance Learning classes for the year. Believe it or not we are already starting to plan our courses for next year! Given the challenges with bell schedules, we tend to work with the same schools each year but we’re always trying to build a new relationship with our neighboring DL districts and exciting electives to peak our students interest.

In addition to high school classes, we received college classes from Hudson Valley Community College. This is a great opportunity for our students to dip a toe into the college classroom and earn some of the basic requirements toward any degree. Our Teaching Assistants provide our students a level of support they will not have their freshman year! The ability to earn college credit in high school has enabled many of our alumni to graduate early, elect to have a minor or help when transferring majors or between colleges.

We will be taking a closer look at some of our other DL classes and HVCC courses.
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