For signing the alphabet? Are fluent signers really that important for that part? If it's the dictionary, or phrases, then yeah I can see your point, but I doubt he's got fluent signers just lined up outside the door. Don't take that the wrong way.
I've been trying to think of a way to put this so it doesn't sound rude (which isn't my intent) but is still "to the point" enough that the point isn't lost in politeness. I guess what I mean is I'm trying NOT to be Deaf and just say what I mean LOL !!
If you're trying to learn ASL, that means (even online) learning from people who are fluent signers. Signers for whom the handshapes used to form various letters and signs are exact, precise, well formed and
naturally formed .
Sign Language handshapes - are (for this purpose) like sounds in English - when you speak with a person who's primary language isn't English most often you can tell ... because of the way they pronounce, enunciate and articulate etc the words. The words have a foreign "sound" to them, even though they are technically English words - right ??? It's the EXACT same for Signing ... students don't notice it, but fluent signers can tell if someone is an experienced signer, or not, by the way they form their letters, move their hands, hold their body ... dozens of little "cues" that add up to say "I'm new at this" or "This is MY language".
So... if you've decided to learn a new language and settle on learning ASL - or even more critically, if you KNOW someone who're Hoh/Deaf and uses ASL, or you're becoming Hoh/Deaf yourself...
Do you want to (and do you think it's morally right to) learn from a website:
In which the signing models have learned out of a textbook, or off another website (and they themselves aren't 100% sure if they're forming the signs correctly) and where the signing models have had no real practice, or limited practice using the language they are now "teaching" for all intents and purposes?
Would you want to
learn a LANGUAGE (even the basics) from people who they themselves would be unable to communicate with you
in that language if you met them in real life?
Would you want to learn about
a language and
a culture from someone who's actaully not immersed in either and is unaware of the many subtleties of the language as well as the cultural&social "norms" of that language as well as the various "cultural faux pas" of that language?
** OR **
If you were looking for a website designed to teach you (as a hearing person - or as a hoh/deaf person looking to become Hoh/Deaf) the Language of ASL as well as the cultural aspects of the primary linguistic community using that language (Hoh/Deaf infants, children & adults) would YOU want and EXPECT:
A site that was made by people who actaully USED the language, are FLUENT in the language and most likely use it as their primary (or at last preferred) means of communication.?
Would you hope and expect that the signing models would be people who represent that cultural group (Hoh/Deaf/CODA/SODA ASLers of the Deaf Community) to which the language belongs?
Wouldn't YOU want as YOUR
TEACHERS people who are fluent (at least conversationally so) in the language AND the culture - so that you as a student not only learned from the people who are highly skilled in not only the "basics" of the language but also it's subtleties...but also
out of respect for the Deaf & ASL community, who's language and culture you are attempting to learn so you can communicate with US: the Hoh/Deaf ASL Community?
Would you want and expect to learn from teachers who are highly skilled signers - or would you want and expect that to learn from people who are basically "actors" who've memorized their parts - regardless of the fact that it's disrespectful to the very people with whom you're hoping to communicate with?
I don't mean this to be rude - just realistic and stop a cultural train wreck before it leaves the station.
Along a similar line...
ASLers (H/Hoh/Deaf) make videos such as "Singing Time" etc of infants & young children reproducing ASL signs because it shows HEARING parents what to expect from their signing infants/children while the children are learning to sign.
This is because hearing parent don't understand what "ASL babble" looks like, which is the signed form a verbal babbling infants and toddlers make ("bbaabaa", "taaaa","bwwuuu","daaaddd ddaaddd","mamama" - and later "bouk","diddlediddle" and closer word approximations). The videos of various level young signers shows parent's/caregivers etc how infants ASL "babble" slowly transforms into actual properly formed signs as the child is physically ABLE to form the signs correctly. THAT is the reason, viewing the "amateur signs" (infant/toddler's version of signs) is valuable to the hearing parent.
Showing videos of teen & adult signers learning to sign doesn't have any real benefit - rather it just shows people incorrectly, or awkwardly forming Signs. The major issue with this is that many people will remember and try to reproduce the awkwardly formed (or even incorrectly formed) signs instead of the correctly formed ASL Sign. The bottom line is it's rarely if ever a good idea to show someone forming a sign wrong (or saying a word wrong) because often that "wrong" form sticks in the viewer/listeners head.
Signs should ALWAYS be demonstrated in as clear, accurate, and clean (fluid, relaxed, natural) form as possible ... and that required fluent signers.
I hope that helps?!