CASLI Language Comprehension & Production 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: In ASL, what is the term for the use of space in front of the signer's body to represent people, objects, or locations?
- Indexing
- Spatial mapping
- Referential locus (Correct answer)
- Topographic space
Correct answer: Referential locus
A referential locus is a specific point established in signing space to represent a person, object, or location that can be referenced throughout the discourse.
Question 2: When an ASL signer uses a classifier predicate such as CL:1 moving toward CL:3, what type of morphological process is being demonstrated?
- Inflection for agreement
- Simultaneous morphology (Correct answer)
- Derivational morphology
- Lexical substitution
Correct answer: Simultaneous morphology
Simultaneous morphology in ASL allows multiple morphemes (handshape, movement, location) to be expressed at the same time within a single sign.
Question 3: Which feature distinguishes ASL topic-comment structure from English subject-predicate structure?
- ASL topics are always signed with one hand
- The topic is fronted and marked with raised eyebrows (Correct answer)
- Comments must follow the same word order as English
- Topics in ASL cannot include pronouns
Correct answer: The topic is fronted and marked with raised eyebrows
In ASL, topicalization moves the topic to the front of the sentence and is non-manually marked with raised eyebrows to signal topic-comment structure.
Question 4: An interpreter notices a Deaf client using mouthing without voice during their signing. This mouthing is most likely functioning as:
- A sign for a fingerspelled English word
- A lexical mouth morpheme that modifies meaning (Correct answer)
- A cued speech supplement
- An indication the client is code-switching to English
Correct answer: A lexical mouth morpheme that modifies meaning
Mouth morphemes in ASL are non-manual signals where specific mouth movements modify the meaning or intensity of a sign without necessarily mouthing an English word.
Question 5: Which prosodic feature in ASL most closely parallels intonation in spoken languages?
- Fingerspelling speed
- Non-manual signals including facial expression and head movement (Correct answer)
- Handshape complexity
- Dominant hand preference
Correct answer: Non-manual signals including facial expression and head movement
Non-manual signals such as eyebrow position, head tilt, and body shift serve prosodic functions in ASL analogous to intonation in spoken languages.
Question 6: What does it mean when an ASL signer uses a 'constructed dialogue' technique?
- The signer paraphrases what another person said
- The signer directly quotes or enacts another person's words or actions using role shift (Correct answer)
- The signer uses a made-up scenario for illustration
- The signer borrows signs from another signed language
Correct answer: The signer directly quotes or enacts another person's words or actions using role shift
Constructed dialogue (role shift or direct discourse) involves the signer shifting their body, eye gaze, and expression to embody another character and report their speech or actions.
Question 7: In CASLI performance assessments, 'source language comprehension' is evaluated separately from 'target language production' primarily because:
- Comprehension errors always result in production errors
- Strong production can mask weak comprehension during interpretation (Correct answer)
- Target language production is less important than comprehension
- CASLI only assesses comprehension for ASL-to-English tasks
Correct answer: Strong production can mask weak comprehension during interpretation
A candidate may produce fluent-sounding output that does not accurately reflect the source, so CASLI evaluates comprehension and production as distinct competencies.
CASLI Language Comprehension & Production 2
In ASL, what is the term for the use of space in front of the signer's body to represent people, objects, or locations?