Call for papers 2/2027 - Sign Languages: Policy, Didactics, and lived Multilingualism

2026-02-17

In this issue, Babylonia addresses sign languages in Switzerland and neighboring countries for the first time. We aim to explore this topic from various perspectives and provide space for discussion on political, legal, linguistic, pedagogical, and language-teaching issues. The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities mentions the right to use sign language, which is officially recognized in EU member states with few exceptions (see also Grosjean 1999). In Switzerland, this is not yet the case at federal level. We are therefore interested in including this language-policy dimension as a central theme in this issue.

In her detailed account of the situation of the three sign languages and their varieties in Switzerland Boyes Braem (2024) also addresses the question of the societal status of sign languages. Mugnier (2023) examines, from a sociolinguistic perspective, the language-policy, pedagogical, and social handling of sign languages in the francophone region, showing that the linguistic otherness of deaf people here may sharpen questions familiar from controversial multilingualism debates. Both authors also briefly address the acquisition and learning of sign languages—a topic central to this issue. Sign languages are part of the typically multilingual repertoires of deaf individuals, raising didactic questions increasingly discussed in the literature. The Companion Volume of the CEFR (Council of Europe 2021) includes descriptors for sign languages and approaches to specific didactics (Geffroy/Leroy 2018, Grote, Sieprath, Staudt 2018), as well as teacher training (Buregat/Drouillet/Perini 2021).

We are therefore interested in contributions on the following thematic areas:

  • Recognition of sign languages / Right to sign language? Status of legislation, initiatives, contributions from other countries, sign languages in inclusive education.
  • Sign languages and varieties in Switzerland’s language regions.
  • Teacher training.
  • Teaching and learning sign languages: didactic concepts and challenges, perspectives from other educational contexts (e.g., France, Germany, Austria, Italy).
  • Sign language: acquisition, bilingualism, bicultural identity of sign language learners/speakers, immersion.
  • Learning sign language(s) as a hearing person: specific challenges (e.g., spatial thinking, auditory vs. visual-gestural modality, turn-taking in sign languages…).

We are open to further suggestions.

We welcome empirical contributions (e.g., research projects), practical contributions (teaching materials, exercises, proven approaches, etc.), and position papers on the topic (policy statements, interviews, etc.). Babylonia prefers clear and easily understandable language. Article length: 16,000 to 20,000 characters (4 to 5 pages).

Please consult the submission checklist and use the provided stylesheet.

Submit your abstract (max. 2,000 characters, including spaces) in German, English, French, Italian, or Romansh by 1 August 2026 to ingo.thonhauser@hepl.ch and/or karine.lichtenauer@unifr.ch.

Deadlines – Issue 2/2027

  • Abstract submission: 1 August 2026  
  • Notification of acceptance/rejection: October 2026  
  • Full article submission: 31 December 2026  
  • Reviewing and feedback  
  • Submission of final version: 1 May 2027  
  • Copy-editing and layout  
  • Publication: August 2027

 


Literature

Boyes Braem, P. (2024). Gebärdensprachen. In E. Glaser, J. Kabatek, & B. Sonnenhauser (Eds.), Sprachenräume der Schweiz Band 1: Sprachen (pp. 185-208). Narr Francke Attempto Verlag GmbH + Co. KG.

Burgat, S., Drouillet, J., & Perini, M. (2021). Former les enseignants de LSF du second degré: regard sur cinq années d’expérience. Les Langues modernes. Dossier: Enseignement et apprentissage des Langues de Signes: perspectives historiques, sociales et linguistiques 115(1), 42-50.

Council of Europe (2021). Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment. Companion Volume. Council of Europe.

Geffroy, V., & Leroy, É. (2018). La didactique de la langue des signes française TIPA. Travaux interdisciplinaires sur la parole et le langage(34). https://doi.org/10.4000/tipa.2653

Grote, K., Sieprath, H., & Staudt, B. (2018). Deaf Didaktik? Weshalb wir eine spezielle Didaktik für den Unterricht in Gebärdensprache benötigen. DAS ZEICHEN, 110, 2-13.

Grosjean, F. (1999). The right of the deaf child to grow up bilingual. Deaf Worlds, 15(2), 29-31. 

Mugnier, S. (2023). Surdité(s), langue(s) et altérité (s) : (RE)constructions des altérités linguistiques. Glottopol(39). https://doi.org/10.4000/glottopol.3808

Timmermans, N. (2005). Le statut des langues des signes en Europe. https://www.fzgresearch.org/deutsch/index.html