J.

Electrical Systems 20-7s (2024): 3863-3871

1
Omar Introducing the Sign Language Flowchart:
Ibrahim Asiri
Towards Enhancing Programming
2
Abdelrahman Learning for Students with Hearing
Osman Elfaki Disabilities
3
Mohamed
Esmael
Abushaira

Abstract: - There is a dependence on software applications in many aspects of contemporary life. Teaching programming to individuals has
become one of the focal points in the strategic plans of many countries. It is evident that students with hearing disabilities face difficulties
in learning programming, which means a significant percentage of society encounters challenges in acquiring programming skills. The first
step in learning programming is understanding flowcharts and using them to design simple programs. Therefore, to address the difficulties
faced by students with hearing disabilities, we have translated flowcharts into sign language, resulting in the creation of Sign Language
Flowcharts. To scientifically explore the performance of students with hearing disabilities in understanding flowcharts, a series of training
sessions was conducted. The results confirmed the difficulties faced by students with hearing disabilities in grasping flowchart concepts.
We took the previous results as motivation to develop Sign Language Flowcharts, which is the outcome of translating flowcharts into sign
language. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of Sign Language Flowcharts in enhancing the understanding of flowchart concepts for
students with hearing disabilities.

Keywords: Sign Language, Flowchart, Hearing Disabilities

1. Introduction
Sign languages serve as a communication bridge, connecting individuals with speech impairments to those
without, thereby enabling effective interaction. Students with hearing disabilities primarily rely on sign language
to understand academic courses, and this, of course, includes computer science students who are deaf. Research
has consistently shown that deaf students face challenges in achieving proficiency in reading and writing skills,
resulting in lower educational achievement compared to their hearing peers (Salkić & Povlakic, 2022). According
to Cavender et al. (2009), deaf and hard-of-hearing students are a marginalized population in the field of
computing, and they encounter additional obstacles when it comes to pursuing higher education in computer
science. Research has indicated that students who are deaf or have hearing impairments encounter significant
challenges when learning applied fields like medicine, engineering, and computer programming (Abuzinadah et
al., 2017). According to Angelopoulou et al. (2023), traditional computer science courses primarily concentrate
on imparting technical skills, neglecting the essential knowledge and training required for creating accessible and
inclusive applications that cater to individuals with hearing disabilities. In addition, Distante and Huang (2007)
and Jašková and Stankovičová (2022) claimed that providing an interpreter in sign language was necessary for
computer science students with hearing impairments.
On the other hand, one of the primary goals of computer science educators is to promote equity by ensuring that
every student has the opportunity to acquire fundamental computer science knowledge. Hence, the previous two
points highlight the importance of finding a mechanism to explain the concepts of computer programming courses
to students with hearing disabilities, ensuring that they are on par with their fellow regular students.
Prior research encouraged the development of new tools for people with disabilities to assist them in actively
participating in educational activities Elfaki and Bassfar (2019), Mohamed et al. (2019), and Elfaki and Alotaibi
(2018).
While Elfaki and Bassfar (2020) claimed that writing software code is one of the main activities in computer
science education. Furthermore, Alsaadi et al., (2022) claimed that Arabic sign language is one of the most used
sign languages. Regrading to this popularity, and for the need of enabling deaf students to learn programming
using their communicated language, we have translated the flowchart diagram into Arabic sign language. The new
developed flowchart is called the "Sign Language Flowchart". Elfaki & Bassfar (2020) stated that the flowchart
is the first step in learning programming.
In this research, we followed a methodology consisting of three steps. During the first step, we conducted
experiments to investigate how students with hearing disabilities comprehend the traditional flowchart diagram.

1
Information Technology Department, College of Computers and Information Technology, University of Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.
[email protected]
2
Computer Science Department, College of Computers and Information Technology, University of Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. [email protected]
3
Special Education Department College of Education and Arts, University of Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. [email protected]
Copyright © JES 2024 on-line : journal.esrgroups.org

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In the second step, the Sign Language Flowchart was developed and presented. In the third step, the validation of
the developed Sign Language Flowchart was introduced.
This paper is organized as follows: in Section Two, the related works have been analyzed, and the research gap
has been identified and presented. In Section Three, the details of developing the Sign Language Flowchart have
been presented. Finally, a discussion and conclusion have been presented.

2. Related Works
Andrei et al. (2013) developed a signing avatar for teaching Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
(STEM) courses to deaf students. This work addresses the problem of the lack of sign language specialists in
STEM courses. Ng'ethe et al. (2015) developed mobile application that provides an authoring tool to construct
computer science lessons by using a series of signed language videos and images, hence a deaf person can teach
computer literacy skills. Abuzinadah et al. (2017) conducted experiments to demonstrate the essential requirement
for a specialized tool to assist deaf individuals in learning computer programming. Thanasekhar et al. (2019)
developed a real-time sign language recognition system to detect gestures from the Indian Sign Language (ISL)
dictionary using a Convolutional Neural Network model. This system is capable of identifying the words being
communicated, including basic programming keywords (Python- like syntax), which have been learned from
dataset containing 500 different images of the gesture corresponding to each word.
Ladner et al. (2020) conducted experiments to explore how well teaching CS courses meets the needs of deaf
students by using Code.org. Their results ensure the critical need for new tools for teaching deaf students the
fundamentals of computer science. Ward et al. (2021) developed a prototype of a centralized portal to provide
accessible virtual learning for students with disabilities, specifically focusing on teaching computer science
modules. However, this prototype neglected to address the needs of students with hearing disabilities, as it did not
include sign language as a means of communication. Levinson et al. (2021) conducted classroom experiments to
measure the understanding of coding and computational thinking education among students with hearing
disabilities. Their results demonstrate the need for specialized educational tools to improve these student’s
outcomes. Srikantaswamy (2022) proposed a technique built on a keyword-based concept to teach deaf students
computer sciences courses. Then, a visual interpretation of the listed keyword was developed. The derivation of
sign language for the keyword is primarily based on concept-oriented principles.
Marghitu et al. (2023) developed coding instruction videos for K12 hearing impaired students using American
Sign Language. The aim is to address the shortage of sign language translators who understand computer coding.
Usman (2023) investigated the impact of considering hearing disabilities in the design of web educational tools.
However, the work did not provide any suggestions for implementing a solution. Aljedaani et al. (2023) examined
the impact of online teaching of computer science courses during the COVID-19 pandemic on deaf students. The
results demonstrated the significance of providing a better learning experience for deaf and hard-of-hearing
students. Angelopoulou et al. (2023) developed experiments to encourage computer science students to use
accessibility methods in their applications. The experiments were conducted to incorporate accessible applications
into computer science courses, followed by an assessment of the effects of accessibility-related activities and
course delivery modes on students' understanding of accessibility. The findings suggest that students exhibited
increased confidence, interest, and familiarity with accessible technology because of these initiatives.

3. Developing the Sign Language Flowchart

Motivation
Teaching computer programming to individuals with hearing disabilities can present unique difficulties and
challenges. Researchers have conducted various studies, utilizing real-time experiments, interviews, and
questionnaires to investigate these challenges (Archundia-Sierra et al.,2023). The same phenomenon has occurred
in the specific case of the Diploma of Computer Programming course offered by the Applied College at the
University of Tabuk, where instructors have also experienced similar difficulties and have expressed their
concerns regarding these challenges. While the exact nature of these challenges may vary, some common issues
could include communication barriers, difficulty to understand course materials, and finding alternative course
materials that could be effective to the specific needs of students with hearing disabilities. Communication barriers
can arise due to the reliance on verbal instructions and explanations in traditional materials of programming
education.
Consequently, instructors may need to explore alternative methods to explain the materials of programming
education. Teaching methods also need to be adapted to meet the unique learning needs of individuals with hearing
disabilities. Instructors may need to employ visual programming tools, demonstration-based teaching, and
interactive activities that rely less on auditory cues.
Therefore, in this paper, a flowchart has been selected as a programming design tool that acts towards enhancing
computer programming teaching for people with hearing disabilities. A flowchart has been selected, as it is usually
the first technique that programming students should learn (Almasabe et al, 2023; Duan et al., 2016; Abdalla et

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al., 2019). We have developed a Sign Language Flowchart, which utilizes sign language instead of traditional
instructions, to enhance accessibility in our teaching approach.
Study sample:
For the participants, we used a purposive sample taken from the students of the computer programming diploma
program for deaf students offered by the Applied College at the University of Tabuk in the academic year 2023-
2024. Nineteen students were able to participate and complete the study. To comply with research ethics, the
authors obtained permission from the Institutional Review Board (IRB) to conduct the study. The study was
conducted during the Spring semester of the 2024 academic year.

The study procedures

The goal of this study was to find out whether using sign language flowcharts would help students to obtain better
results in learning programming. Initially, we conducted a pilot test to assess the students' comprehension of
flowcharts. The findings revealed that all students faced significant challenges in acquiring a complete and
accurate understanding of the presented flowchart. As a result, we decided to establish training sessions
specifically geared towards teaching students how to interpret and utilize flowcharts. Subsequently, we
administered a quiz to evaluate the students' knowledge of flowcharts. The results clearly indicated the difficulties
encountered by the selected students in comprehending flowcharts. As a result of that, we developed the Sign
Language Flowchart. Students were then provided another training session on the new Sign Language Flowchart.
The session focused on teaching the students the flowchart elements that were translated into sign language.
Finally, we assessed the impact of our proposed Sign Language Flowchart on improving students' understanding
of flowchart concepts. The results of using our developed Sign Language Flowchart are highly promising. Further
details are demonstrated in the results section. Table 1 displays the study procedures and steps from the initial
thought to the findings.
Table 1: The study procedures
Step Input Output
1 Pilot test to assess the students' Questions, Interviews Need to provide training sessions about
comprehension of the proposed flowcharts
flowchart
2 Conduct training session to Training materials Training sessions
teach students how to interpret
and utilize flowcharts
3 Assess the results of the Test questions Enhance flowchart knowledge slightly
training sessions compared to the first step
4 Develop the Sign Language Traditional flowchart, Sign Language Flowchart
Flowchart Signs of written Arabic
sign language
5 Conduct training sessions Training materials Training sessions
using the Sign Language
Flowchart
6 Assess the developed Sign Test materials Report the findings which indicated that the
Language Flowchart Sign Language Flowchart significantly
enhanced students' understanding of
flowchart concepts

In the following, each step of our study procedure has been explaied in detail.
1) Assess the students' comprehension of the flowchart. As is known to all programming instructors,
flowcharts are the first step in explaining programming. These help students to understand the logic of
programming by illustrating the sequential steps involved in its execution. Therefore, when assessing students'
comprehension of programming, it is necessary to evaluate first their understanding of flowcharts. This step has
been implemented by conducting direct interviews with all the participants in our study. We then distributed
questions gathered from flowchart classes. The results indicate a crucial need to improve the understanding of
flowcharts to enhance computer programming skills for deaf individuals.

2) Conducting training sessions to teach students how to interpret and utilize flowcharts. The participants
were offered multiple sessions related to this matter. Table 2 illustrates the training program schedule.

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Table 2: The training program schedule

# Session Title Purpose Training Content Evaluation Questions Duration
1 Introductory Getting to know The concept of What are flowcharts? 50 Min
session the students and flowcharts, their What is their
introducing the importance and use importance?
program What are their uses?
2 Algorithms Defining Learn about the concept What are the steps to 50 Min
concepts of the of algorithms make a phone call?
algorithms Learn about the
importance of algorithms
Learn about the
characteristics of
algorithms
3 Structure of Defining Concept of sequencing Provide examples of a 50 min
alogrithms structure of Concept of choice sequence, repetition, and
alogrithms Concept of repetition selection
4 Exercise Ensure the Arithmetic problems as Solving arithmetic 50 min
understanding of content for algorithm problems by using
the previous part exercise algorithms
5 Flowchart (1) Understanding Start and end shapes Recognize the discussed 50 min
the flowchart shapes by using
shapes (part 1) Input and output shapes examples

Processing and
operations
6 Flowchart (2) Understanding Conditions shapes Recongize the discussed 50 min
the flowchart Repretions shaper shapes by using
shapes (part 2) examples

7 Exercise Ensure the Arithmetic problems as Solving arithmetic 50 min

understanding of content for flowchart problems by using
the previous part exercise flowcharts
8 Test Ensure the 120 min
understanding of
the conducted
training

3) Assess the results of the training sessions. The last step in Table 2 illustrates the test that has been
conducted to evaluate the results of the provided training sessions. The results show a slight enhancement of
flowchart knowledge compared to the previous findings. However, there is still a severe lack of understanding in
flowchart knowledge, which motivated us to develop the Sign Language Flowchart.

4) Develop the Sign Language Flowchart. In this step, we have used the symbols of written Arabic sign
language to re-represent the elements of flowcharts in form of sign language. Figure 1 shows an example of written
Arabic sign language.

Figure 1: Example of written Arabic sign language

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During this stage of the study we translated the flowchart elements into written Arabic sign language to produce
the new concept, which is the Sign Language Flowchart. Table 3 illustrates the main translated shapes.

Table 3: The proposed translated shapes of the flowchart

# Flowchart Shape in regular Element of the Sign Language
meaning flowchart written Arabic translation of the
sign language flowchart element

1 Start

2
Input

3 Processing

4 Decision

5 End

6 Output/print

7 Process

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Figure 2 is an example of one of the Sign Language Flowcharts used in the study. The problem that needs to be
solved in the figure is a sum of two numbers. Thus, two variables A, and B have been entered into the system, and
their total has been printed as a result.

Figure 2: Example of the Sign Language Flowchart

5) In this step, we have taught programming for the sample students using the developed Sign Language
Flowchart. Participants received a training session on the Sign Language Flowchart, in which the participants
were given the opportunity to practice and apply their knowledge. Figure 3 depicts an image from the training
session.

Figure 3: A participant practices the Sign Language Flowchart

6) Assess the developed Sign Language Flowchart. After finishing two training sessions, students were
provided with a test consisting of 10 multiple choice questions. The questions were designed to find out if using
sign writing would help students to obtain a better understanding of flowchart concepts. Figure 4 depicts the
questions used in the test. The results of the test in this step were promising, as the majority of the questions were
answered with very high scores. The participants’ average on the test was 8.74 out of 10, with a standard deviation
of 0.81. Table 3 illustrates the individual score for each participant.

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Table 3: individual score for participants

Participant # Score
1 9
2 7
3 9
4 7
5 9
6 10
7 9
8 8
9 9
10 10
11 9
12 8
13 9
14 9
15 9
16 9
17 9
18 8
19 9
Average 8.74
SD 0.81

Figure 4: Sample of questions used in the test

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The test results reflected promising findings, indicating that the effectiveness of the developed Sign Language
Flowchart. Most of the participants were able to achieve high scores. In terms of aggregated results for each
question, 74% of the questions scored above the average. The aggregated findings for each question indicate that
70% of the posttest questions had at least 89% accurate responses. Table 4 and Figure 5 illustrate the detailed
findings regarding the answers’ accuracy.

Table 4: Findings about answer accuracy for each question

Questions
Question number Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q5 Q6 Q7 Q8 Q9 Q 10
Correct answers 19 19 13 18 17 17 14 12 18 19
% of correct answers
100% 100% 68% 95% 89% 89% 74% 63% 95% 100%
Mean
0 0 0.48 0.23 0.32 0.32 0.45 0.50 0.23 0
SD
1 1 0.68 0.95 0.89 0.89 0.74 0.63 0.95 1

Figure 5: Representation of the participants’ results on each question

4. Conclusion and Discussion

Scientific studies have proven that individuals with hearing disabilities struggle to communicate effectively using
traditional methods. The most successful methods of communication for them rely on sign language (Asiri et al.,
2024). Therefore, it is crucial to introduce a method to transfer educational tools into sign languages. This research
deals with the issue of difficulties of teaching programming for students with hearing disabilities. In this research,
the flowchart was chosen to be translated into sign language, as it is considered the first step students take in their
journey to learn programming.
Initially, the knowledge of deaf students about flowcharts was assessed through group quizzes and individual
interviews. The results confirmed the need to provide training sessions on flowcharts. Secondly, training sessions
were conducted to teach students with hearing disabilities the principles of basic programming using traditional
flowcharts. Third, the difficulties students faced in understanding were authenticated and proven through
evaluation tests. Fourth, these proven difficulties motivated us to incorporate sign language into the programming
learning process. We used written Arabic sign language to translate traditional flowcharts, and we refer to the
translated flowchart as the Sign Language Flowchart. Training sessions were conducted using the developed Sign
Language Flowchart to help deaf students understand the principles of programming. In these training sessions,
we used the same training materials that were used in previous sessions, but with a replacement of the traditional
flowchart with the Sign Language Flowchart. To evaluate our developed Sign Language Flowchart, we conducted
a study where the results showed a significant enhancement in students' understanding of flowchart concepts.
Comparing the level of understanding of the concepts by the Sign Language Flowchart, the students achieved a
peak result with an average of 87.4%. The overall result for most questions was around 90%.
The revealed results are aligned with what Salkić and Povlakic (2022) indicated that hard-of-hearing students are
not proficient in reading. Thus, transferring knowledge from regular written languages into sign language would
help them to have a better understanding of the information. As a part of the validation for this hypothesis, results
have verified these findings.
For future work, additional tools for computer science learning and education will be translated into sign language,
with the aim of enhancing the educational process of programming for deaf and hard-of-hearing students.

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Acknowledgment
The authors extend their appreciation to the Deanship of Research and Graduate Studies at University of Tabuk
for funding this work through Research no. S-1444-0087.

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