Learning sign language beneficial for everyone

May 9, 2024

By Chai Xin Jie

MAIN CAMPUS, 30 March - Mathematics Society (MATHSOC) Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) successfully conducted a sign language workshop, themed ‘Bengkel Bahasa Isyarat’ at Lecture Hall G31, School of Mathematical Science on 30 March 2024 from 9 am to 12 pm.

This workshop was a collaboration with Santai-Santai Bahasa Isyarat Malaysia (BIM). Around 75 participants joined this sign language workshop. Three speakers are Prisnie A/P Prawing, Lam Siew Ing and Noor Farhanah Nadia Johari, and all have Ijazah Sarjana Muda Pendidikan Khas.

Committee member of ‘Bengkel Bahasa Isyarat’, Muhammad Shakur Adlan Mohamad Syahidan emphasised their goal of creating awareness among the USM students about sign language. The workshop teaches sign language so that people with special needs, like hearing or speech problems, can interact clearly with sign language users.

“People who have learned sign language give them the chance to learn new things that can help them grow personally and professionally in the future. Participants can learn sign language, which will help them interact with deaf or hard-of-hearing people more efficiently. This will make their communities more accepting and understanding,” Shakur said.

“An issue we face is that there aren’t many people attending this workshop. This is mostly due to some students are not around USM because they have online classes. Therefore, we have made our program more well-known and sent invitations to people outside of university, so anyone interested in joining can do so, even if they are not currently enrolled as students,” he continued.

Nur Syazwina Azmir, Mathematical Sciences 2, said she chose to join this workshop because she was interested in knowing in detail about sign language so that she can use it to communicate with people who might have trouble speaking or hearing. After joining the workshop, she became very good at using the right sign language and realised that her old method, which involved making up her own sign language did not work.

“The most memorable session was when the panels taught us to sing using sign language. I think the session was very meaningful because we had to make facial expressions with full of feeling. The guest speakers taught us seriously until we understood sign language. They also often communicate with the participants, so we don’t get bored,” Syazwina said.

“I strongly encourage other people to attend future sign language workshops. These sessions teach you a lot about sign language and how important it is for promoting inclusive conversation. Plus, learning sign language is fun and helpful for everyone. That’s why I am actively encouraging others to join, which will help people learn and appreciate sign language more,” she added.