Temitope’s background

Temitope Olaniyi is the Deputy Chief of Party for Strengthening Deaf Education, Empowerment, & Employment (Deaf-E3), an initiative funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), awarded to Gallaudet University, Washington, D.C., and implemented by the Gallaudet in Nigeria-Africa (GAIN) program. The aim of this activity is to advance K-12 bilingual deaf education for employment and life opportunities toward the empowerment of deaf, hard of hearing, and deafblind children and youth in Nigeria.

Previously, Temitope served as In-country Teacher Lead for Deaf-E3 Activity, working with MMP experts to train educators on multilingual and multimodal pedagogical (MMP) approaches for D/HH/DB students. He was the pioneering president (2015-2021) of the Deaf Teachers Association of Nigeria (DTAN). A passionate educator, he teaches deaf students and has a special interest in preschool deaf children’s language acquisition and the promotion of Nigerian Sign Language. He holds a Nigerian Certificate of Education in Special Education/Rehabilitation Science and a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration.

About the Nigerian Sign Language Project

Temitope is creating a language nest at a local preschool to immerse Deaf children in Nigerian Sign Language (NSL) from an early age, promoting linguistic development and supporting their educational foundation. In Nigeria, where 95% of Deaf children are born to hearing parents, exposure to NSL is often delayed, leading to limited proficiency in the language. Additionally, Deaf schools frequently rely on American Sign Language (ASL)-based resources, unintentionally marginalizing NSL.

The language nest will provide a natural, home-like environment where children can acquire NSL through fluent NSL users. The program will include a customized curriculum with NSL vocabulary, grammar, storytelling, songs, and play-based learning. Teachers, staff, and parents will receive NSL training, and community outreach will encourage early language acquisition. By documenting teaching methods, challenges, and successes, the project aims to promote NSL’s preservation, cultural significance, and long-term impact.