West High School – American Sign Language I, II, III, IV

Mar 2026 · 2nd Semester

American Sign Language (ASL) I–IV provides students with a progressive and immersive study of ASL as a distinct language and culture. Rooted in the Virginia World Language Standards and ACTFL’s World-Readiness Standards for Learning Languages, these courses develop communicative competence through receptive and expressive skills, linguistic accuracy, and cultural understanding of the Deaf community. Students will learn to engage in real-world conversations, interpret authentic ASL content, and present information on familiar and academic topics using appropriate linguistic structures and non-manual signals. As students advance through the sequence, they will explore more complex grammatical structures, expand vocabulary, and deepen their understanding of Deaf history, culture, and contemporary issues. (+.5 weighted credit for ASL III & IV)