Bilingual–bicultural education

Bilingual–Bicultural or Bi-Bi deaf education programs use sign language as the native, or first language, to teach Deaf children. For example, in the United States Bi-Bi proponents state that American Sign Language (ASL) should be the natural first language for deaf children, although the majority of deaf and hard of hearing children are born to hearing parents. In this same vein, within Bi-Bi educational programs the spoken or written language used by the majority of the population is viewed as a secondary language to be acquired either after or at the same time as the native language. It is vital for Deaf children to learn to sign American Sign Language (ASL) from an early age. As without it, Deaf children can encounter a deep-rooted language and cognitive deficit.