At the Ignite event on 5 September at the Berry School of Arts, every speaker gave us something to think about. Over the next few weeks, I will be sharing highlights from each presentation. You can find the other presentations as they are published here.
Kimberley Williams opened the second half of the evening with a talk that was equal parts fun and deeply important. She began by asking if we had ever struggled to find the right words, or felt that English simply was not enough to express what we wanted to say. Her answer was simple: sometimes what we need is not more words, but a different language altogether.
“If more of us learned Auslan, we could meet the deaf community halfway instead of expecting them to always meet us.”
That language is Auslan, Australian Sign Language. Kimberley reminded us that Auslan is not “English on your hands.” It is a full language with its own grammar and rules, recognised as the language of the Australian deaf community. Auslan is taught in schools, has its own dictionary, and is used every day by people across the country.
Auslan works where spoken language fails, in noisy restaurants, at concerts, even underwater.
With humour and warmth, Kimberley showed the audience a few signs, from everyday words to her personal favourite: prawn. She explained how Auslan can be used in places where spoken language fails — in noisy restaurants, at a concert, or even underwater. During COVID and the bushfires, many of us saw Auslan interpreters standing beside leaders on our television screens, making vital information accessible in real time.
“Auslan is not just gestures. It is a full blown language with grammar, structure, and expression.”
Kimberley acknowledged that she herself is not deaf, and spoke with respect about sharing Auslan as an ally. Her deaf friends reassured her that awareness is a positive step, and she urged anyone interested to learn from deaf-led organisations with native signers, not from YouTube where many of the resources teach American Sign Language instead.
“Inclusion begins with learning how to connect.”
Her message was powerful. If more of us learned Auslan, we could meet the deaf community halfway instead of expecting them always to meet us. We could use it from childhood to support language development, and we could use it later in life when hearing fades. At a noisy family barbecue, when grandpa forgets his hearing aid, signing could keep him included instead of isolated.
Kimberley left us with a simple sign to try together: “It’s lovely to meet you.” And with it, a reminder that inclusion starts with learning how to connect.
Read Kimberley’s Master’s Thesis The Lived Experience of Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students in New South Wales that used Auslan to Access the Mainstream Curriculum, in the Context of the Support Models Provided for their Inclusion
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