A New Era in the Right to Sign The Commission’s approach has been to in speech articulation, lip-reading and focus on working with those government preparation for employment in manual departments responsible for the priority vocations.6 But for most prelingually deaf areas identified above. It has explored how children, an oral approach compromised these agencies give effect to the official meaningful access to education and self- status of NZSL and provide accessible esteem.7 services to NZSL users. The use of sign language was forbidden By bringing this information together in one in New Zealand deaf schools until 1979. place, the Inquiry sought to build on existing However, an underground “language of the NZSL work. The aim is to identify steps hands” thrived among the playgrounds, in forward for ensuring greater realisation of the hostels of the deaf schools and among linguistic human rights for deaf people. ex-school students in the community. Since the mid-1980s this language has been 1.4 New Zealand Sign Language history known as NZSL. The stigma that positioned sign languages as inferior to spoken languages was Bringing a critical mass of deaf people influenced by an historical view. This saw together enables the development of a sign languages as a symbol of “otherness” signing community.5 In New Zealand this is and a sure path to alienation from society.8 first known to have occurred when a deaf The view was reinforced by a traditional school was established in Christchurch in medical approach to deafness that focused 1880. This was followed later by two more on the physical condition of “not hearing”. deaf schools in the North Island. All other aspects of deaf people’s lives were interpreted through that lens.9 This deficit These schools taught using the oral method approach contrasts starkly with a human (training in speech and lip-reading) only rights approach which recognises the and forbade the use of sign language by inherent dignity and equality of deaf people teachers and pupils. This was consistent and values their linguistic and cultural with international methods of educating identity. deaf children at that time. The oral method elevated the status of spoken language over Since the 1970s, deaf communities around sign language. It used spoken language as the world, including in New Zealand, have the medium and goal of education for deaf been speaking for themselves. They have children. As a result, the education of deaf been challenging the historical view of children was largely dedicated to training deafness as a problem. Deaf people in New 19