Captions for the Blind and Deaf-Blind Various students are using sign language, showing this place is Tsukuba University of Technology. The video shows several 1-second clips of different students enjoying their chats in sign language. The camera’s point of view is going towards the NTUT entrance. (This video’s point of view will be following the person holding the camera. That person will be referred to as Ayaka from now on.) As soon as Ayaka reaches the gate to NTUT, she meets another woman with long black hair. This woman’s name is Meg, and she asks, smiling, Meg (in ASL): Are you Deaf? Ayaka: Yes! Meg: This place is a university for Deaf students. Are you interested in visiting it? Ayaka: Yes! Meg: OK, I’ll show you around. Come with me! Meg starts to walk to show Ayaka around. They walk along a row of cherry blossom trees in full bloom. Then Meg starts to explain something. Meg: Our university is for Deaf students and Blind students. There are two campuses here. This area is the campus for Deaf students. There are about 200 Deaf students studying here right now. Come with me. I’ll show you more. Meg and Ayaka continue to an atrium. Then Ayaka looks around the atrium, which has an area of about 5 acres. The buildings have wide windows, showing it was designed with Deaf space in mind. Meg: There are four majors here. Information Science and Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Architecture, and Design. Deaf students learn through sign language. The scene cuts to the Ergonomics class. A male teacher is teaching with a picture shown through a projector and explaining by Japanese Sign Language. About 10 students are seen seated in the class The scene cuts to the Software Engineering class. About 20 students are using their own computers. A female teacher is standing next to a student and telling him something. Then, the same teacher is teaching another student using fluent Japanese Sign Language. Other teachers are also seen teaching in the same classroom. The scene cuts to Dr. Shiraishi’s Seminar. There are 5 men (2 teachers and 3 students) huddled around a small device with some electric wiring connected to a laptop. The teacher is giving instructions in Japanese Sign Language and everyone is listening to him. The scene is now outside. Meg and Ayaka are walking to another building, and Meg starts to explain about the building in front of her, which has two floors and remarkably large windows. Meg: This building is used for graduate school. Hearing students can come here, because the Information Communication Accessibility major is taught here. Here, hearing students can learn how they can support Deaf people. The scene cuts to the Advanced Lectures on Coordination for Disability Student Service class. A female teacher is teaching in Japanese Sign Language. 7 students are seated in this classroom. The scene cuts to Dr. Osugi’s Seminar. A woman is standing front of the class and the other 4 people are watching her. And a teacher begins to talk to her. The scene goes outside again. Meg: In the cafeteria, the staff, students and teachers socialize in sign language. The scene is now in the cafeteria. Some people are lined up by a counter to get their lunch. Three students are chatting while eating. They are chatting in sign language and laughing. Two other students are also having their lunch and talking in tactile sign language which is usually used by the Deaf-Blind. The scene cuts to the outside again. Meg: That area is the students’ dormitories. 200 Deaf students socialize all day there. They keep walking straight towards the dormitories. A tiny grass hill can be seen to the right and there is a line of yellow braille blocks on the ground curving towards the dormitories. The scene is now at a dormitory hall. A woman opens her room door and gets out to the lobby. There are 3 other students seated around the table, waiting for her. As she approaches the table, everyone waves their hands at her and they start to talk. The scene is now at the library. A student has taken a book from the bookshelf. He brings it to the counter. The staff there knows Japanese Sign Language and the staff tells him when he should return the book. The scene is now at the gym. About 10 students of the Badminton Club are playing badminton. The scene cuts to the Tea Ceremony Club. Several ceramic pots, small wooden cups, and a wooden ladle are seen on the wood shelves. About 10 people are kneeling in a circle on tatami flooring. They are talking and eating small Japanese sweets. On the left, a woman is making tea in the traditional Japanese manner. She puts a bowl on her palm and turns it with her right hand. The scene is now outside, front of a building and a small grassy hill. A male student is explaining about his university. Man: Hello, everyone. I am a graduate school student. I am the first Deaf-Blind student ever to attend this university. There are many students with other disabilities at this university. I enjoy spending time with students here. We have disabilities, but we help each other, so this is a good place. Now, a woman is explaining about the university. She is standing in front of a large window. Woman: We can eat, study, and chat with our friends here. We can do these any time of the day here, so I recommend this place. Another man is explaining about the university. He is seated in front of his desk. Man: Hi! I am a hearing student. When I started studying here, I didn't know any sign language at all. I gradually picked up sign language while chatting with Deaf friends here at the university. It is a great and fun experience for me! Another man is explaining about the university. He is in the gym, standing in front of exercise machines. Man: I like that we can communicate with people who have similar interests and that we work hard together. The scene is now outside, near the school entrance. Meg: Are you enjoying it here? Hi! This is my friend. They meet a man. (His name is Kameda.) Kameda: Hello. Meg: Do you know ASL, right? Kameda: Yes, I do. Meg: How did you learn ASL? Kameda: I took an ASL class here and visited the U.S.A. I met Deaf friends there. The scene cuts to an ASL class with a student from RIT. The RIT student is teaching ASL to 3 students in the classroom. The scene cuts to an ASL class with a native signer. An ASL teacher is teaching five students how to express something in ASL. The scene cuts back to the same location where Meg and Kameda were talking at. Meg:Great! Meg: She is interested in this university. Kameda: Here? Our university is wonderful. If you come study here, you will enjoy it a lot. Meg: Yes. I think so, too. Ayaka: Yeah! Thank you. Ayaka: Good-bye. Now everyone is smiling and waving their hands. Ayaka is walking away from them and the screen slowly fades to black.