Using the Adapted Flemish Sign Language Visual Communication and Sign Language Checklist

This study addresses the topic of visual communication and early sign language acquisition in deaf children with a Flemish Sign Language (Vlaamse Gebarentaal or VGT) input. Results are obtained through a checklist focusing on sign-exposed deaf children's visual communication and early sign language acquisition: the adapted VGT Visual Communication and Sign Language checklist. The purpose is to obtain the first detailed picture of these children's visual and early VGT acquisition and to determine the optimal support for the checklist's ongoing standardization process. At the time of testing, all children were 24-months old and had been diagnosed with a severe or profound hearing loss before the age of 6 months. Half of the children were being raised in deaf families with native VGT exposure, while the other half were from hearing families with no prior VGT knowledge. All parents declared VGT accessibility to the child and that they used VGT in the home. Resulting from this study is the identification of five early visual communication items as being potentially good indicators of later (sign) language development. Further, concerns were put forward on the lack of ongoing visual, communication, and language support for deaf children and their parents in Flanders.