OK School for the Deaf offers free, online American Sign Language training

SULPHUR, Okla. – Anyone who wants to learn American Sign Language can register now for Oklahoma School for the Deaf’s free online courses.

Last year, 452,934 people from the United States and more than 30 other countries participated in OSD’s self-paced ASL I or the advanced ASL II classes.

The community outreach courses have eight pre-recorded lessons taught by Jolene Reed, an OSD teacher who is Deaf.

Reed presents videos with no audio or voice. She signs and points to words and phrases on PowerPoint slides using a cursor to help students follow along as they become naturally immersed in ASL.

Students complete 8 lessons per course with quizzes after each lesson. The courses are self-paced, which allows students to take class at convenient times and review the lessons as many times as needed to learn the content.

"These sign language online classes are awesome opportunities to build a strong foundation for communication with the Deaf and hard of hearing individuals,” Reed said. “You'll gain knowledge of vocabulary, grammar, and contextual meanings in American Sign Language or ASL and Deaf culture. This can serve as a bridge between the Deaf world and the hearing world."

OSD has offered ASL courses to the public for many years. During the COVID pandemic in 2020, the school put the courses online in the spring and fall and the new platform exploded in popularity.

“ASL is the third most popular foreign language class taught at American colleges and universities, Dr. Laine said.  “Learning ASL helps hearing people to communicate directly with Deaf individuals without communication barriers. It is all about being inclusive.”

“OSD’s ASL online training is free in part due to the generosity of the OSD Foundation,” Laine said. “We ask that students consider donating to the OSD Foundation at www.osdfoundation.net to help share expenses for our free training.

No accurate count of the number of ASL users is available; however, a widely quoted estimate by StoryLearning indicates between 250,000 and 500,000 people use ASL as their native language in the United States and Canada. It is the third most used language in the U.S., after English and Spanish, according to the same source.

Spring 2024 registration is available now. The ASL lessons will be released on February 12.

For more information about Oklahoma School for the Deaf’s online ASL classes, visit https://courses.osd.k12.ok.us/ or email aslclass@osd.k12.ok.us. A help tab is available for participants to assist with questions. but they can contact OSD through the course website. 

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Oklahoma School for the Deaf offers a leading educational environment for residential and commuter students with highly qualified staff in their academic specialties and Deaf education. Students attend classes free of charge four days each week and are transported home for three-day weekends, summers and holidays. OSD provides early development services for children from birth to three years and operates and early childhood center in Chickasha. In addition, OSD offers summer school classes and free outreach services for Deaf and hard of hearing students who attend other public schools, their families and educators. OSD is a division of Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services.

The OSD Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization overseen by an independent board of trustees which provides funds for OSD school programs and projects not otherwise funded by federal or state government agencies.  Educational grants from the OSD Foundation continue to enhance student programs through expanded funding for materials, equipment, and experiences.