Angela Van Tongeren says even in 2023, with all the public knows about American Sign Language, there are still a few extremely common misconceptions.
“People tend to think ASL is easier to learn than other languages,” the Perry High School teacher said. “A lot of kids struggle with how long it takes to memorize things and to master a new language. While there’s a lot of technology that’s come along that’s helpful, it’s hard once you leave a classroom and build language skills. You have to put in a lot of time.”
Van Tongeren said visual learners and those with strong memory skills tend to pick up ASL concepts faster, though the work ethic is what matters most.
