SignLab Amsterdam, part of the University of Amsterdam (UvA), is collaborating with the Royal Auris Group (Auris) to develop ZininNGT, an app designed to help parents of deaf and hard-of-hearing children learn Dutch Sign Language (NGT). This project recently received funding from ZonMw. The app enables parents to quickly learn and use more NGT sentences, which significantly supports their child’s language development.
The project is led by Floris Roelofsen, Professor of Formal Semantics at the UvA Institute for Logic, Language and Computation (ILLC) and Director of SignLab Amsterdam. Jos Ritmeester is conducting PhD research on the app’s development and use. The innovation team at Auris is involved in the app’s creation, while the research team provides support for the doctoral research.
More than 95% of deaf and hard-of-hearing children are born into hearing families, yet only a small percentage of parents learn sign language. As a result, many of these children have limited access to a rich and accessible language environment, which can lead to delays in their cognitive, emotional, and social development. ZininNGT aims to support parents in learning NGT signs and sentences, helping to close this gap.
In 2024, SignLab and Auris developed an initial version of the app featuring videos of everyday sentences in sign language. This allows parents to practice signs, sentences, and gain insight into NGT grammar. The project continues to evolve, incorporating user feedback to enhance its effectiveness.
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