We are four Deaf Studies lecturers:Kate Rowley, Dai O’Brien, Annelies Kusters and Mette Sommer Lindsay collaborating on a project exploring how Deaf Studies has been taught in UK universities from the 1980s to today. Deaf Studies pedagogies have rarely been documented. So, this project brings together past and present lecturers to share experiences, reflect on changes over time, and document those.We focus on how Deaf Studies teaching can reflect the diversity of deaf communities — across race, gender, class, migration, and language backgrounds — and how different forms of knowledge are valued in the classroom.

We are running three deaf-led, interactive workshops (2026–2027) with around 10–15 current and retired Deaf Studies and BSL lecturers. The project will also establish a UK based, deaf led pedagogical network to support ongoing exchange of ideas, resources, and peer learning.

Timeline:
Workshop 1 — June 2026: Themes and content taught in Deaf Studies, past and present
Workshop 2 — Early 2027: Teaching methods and how they are changing
Workshop 3 — Late 2027: Discussion of preliminary findings

Our outputs will include:
An open access report
A webinar
A share d teaching materials resource pool with analytical notes
A journal article on deaf led pedagogy and generational change
A workshop at the Deaf Academics and Researchers Conference, Vilnius 2027