British Sign Language will soon be available as a GCSE for students. With the help of a new degree, students will learn how to sign successfully in BSL and gain knowledge of the background of sign language in the UK.

A 12-week consultation on course content has involved parents, educators, and the deaf and hearing communities. The Department of Education released the finalised curriculum for the new qualification.

Exam board syllabuses for the new qualification are intended to be authorised by the government by September 2025. In response to deaf youngster Daniel Jillings’s advocacy for the new qualification and his family’s legal fight to get one instituted as soon as possible, the government said in 2018 that it would investigate implementing a GCSE in BSL. The 2021 Strictly Come Dancing winner Rose Ayling-Ellis’s campaign has also increased public knowledge of sign language.

“Studying British Sign Language can open so many doors for young people, giving pupils an understanding of how thousands of people communicate and ultimately even expanding job prospects,” stated Gillian Keegan, the Education Secretary. In addition to removing obstacles and equipping young people with useful new skills, this new certification will honour the rich heritage and cultural significance of British Sign Language.”

“We’re grateful to those who engaged with our consultation, which was a crucial step forward for this new and important qualification,” stated Michael Hanton, deputy head regulator at Ofqual. We will now start the comprehensive regulatory work necessary to guarantee that students will receive a high-quality and equitable new GCSE in British Sign Language.”

“We’re delighted that the finalised course content has now been published after more than a decade of campaigning for a GCSE in British Sign Language (BSL),” stated Susan Daniels, chief executive of the National Deaf Children’s Society. In order to remove obstacles and promote the rich history and culture of British Sign Language, a GCSE in the language is essential. To get here, an amazing amount of effort has been done, not the least of which is the work of young deaf activist Daniel Jillings, who battled valiantly for the opportunity to study for a GCSE in BSL.”

This is long overdue and ought to become mandatory.

This is a really smart move. Additionally, it will promote inclusivity and facilitate everyone’s lives.

In addition to being deaf, Eugene Hairston was a dominant middleweight fighter in the 1950s. The reason for the ring lights flashing at the start and finish of each round was Hairston. This was attributed to Hairston’s incapacity to hear the bell; consequently, the New York Boxing Commission placed lights, which gained popularity as people with hearing found they too profited from the inability to hear the bell over the cacophonous sounds of the audience.

Flashing lights are now a common sight in the boxing world, thanks to Hairston’s professional fighting career.

In theory, this is a great idea, but it will be difficult for them to recruit enough teachers.