@inproceedings{fiedler:26038:sign-lang:lrec,
  author    = {Fiedler, Anike and Schulder, Marc and Bleicken, Julian and Herrmann, Annika},
  title     = {Generations in the {DGS} {Corpus}: Evolving Outreach Activities and Cross-Generational Stories on Social Media in a Long-Term Corpus Project},
  pages     = {155--163},
  editor    = {Efthimiou, Eleni and Fotinea, Stavroula-Evita and Hanke, Thomas and Hochgesang, Julie A. and Mesch, Johanna and Schulder, Marc},
  booktitle = {Proceedings of the {LREC2026} 12th Workshop on the Representation and Processing of Sign Languages: Language in Motion},
  maintitle = {15th International Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation ({LREC} 2026)},
  publisher = {{ELRA Language Resources Association (ELRA)}},
  address   = {Palma, Mallorca, Spain},
  day       = {16},
  month     = may,
  year      = {2026},
  isbn      = {978-2-493814-82-1},
  language  = {english},
  url       = {https://www.sign-lang.uni-hamburg.de/lrec/pub/26038.html},
  abstract  = {Social media has become a powerful tool for research projects, community outreach, science communication, and to recruit participants. Due to its differences to traditional media and presentation modes, it provides a particular focus on producing very concise content that is entertaining and accessible while staying informative. In this paper, we describe how the long-term project DGS-Korpus, creators of a corpus and dictionary of German Sign Language, evolved its outreach strategies over time. One unique aspect of its unusually long project run-time of nineteen years is that it has involved several cases of multiple family members participating in the project at different points in time, resulting in cross-generational participation. The paper describes how the project's social media campaign uses these cross-generational connections to illustrate important aspects of the project, such as its relevance for cultural heritage and language identity, the different ways that members of the German deaf community were and are involved in the project, and its relevance to interpersonal connections.}
}

@inproceedings{murtagh:26031:sign-lang:lrec,
  author    = {Murtagh, Irene and Schulder, Marc and Herrmann, Annika and Paulus, Liona and Bleicken, Julian and Blekos, Kostas and Konstantakopoulos, Athanasios and Antzakas, Klimis and Kosmopoulos, Dimitrios and Valls, Eva and Marques, Ricardo and Blat, Josep and Karampidis, Konstantinos and Elsendoorn, Ben},
  title     = {Introducing {VISTA-SL}: A Multilingual e-Learning Platform for Deaf and Hearing Learners of Sign Languages},
  pages     = {361--370},
  editor    = {Efthimiou, Eleni and Fotinea, Stavroula-Evita and Hanke, Thomas and Hochgesang, Julie A. and Mesch, Johanna and Schulder, Marc},
  booktitle = {Proceedings of the {LREC2026} 12th Workshop on the Representation and Processing of Sign Languages: Language in Motion},
  maintitle = {15th International Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation ({LREC} 2026)},
  publisher = {{ELRA Language Resources Association (ELRA)}},
  address   = {Palma, Mallorca, Spain},
  day       = {16},
  month     = may,
  year      = {2026},
  isbn      = {978-2-493814-82-1},
  language  = {english},
  url       = {https://www.sign-lang.uni-hamburg.de/lrec/pub/26031.html},
  abstract  = {This article introduces the VISTA-SL project, which aims to create an integrated e-learning platform for four European sign languages: German Sign Language, Greek Sign Language, Irish Sign Language, and Dutch Sign Language. Designed as a complement to face-to-face classes, the VISTA-SL platform will combine expertise in sign language education and education technologies to provide an adaptive and interactive learning environment suitable for deaf, hard of hearing and hearing users seeking to learn a sign language, whether it constitutes their first language or not. Building on a co-ordinated curriculum that covers vocabulary, grammar and Deaf culture materials, the platform will provide video material presented by deaf L1 signers, together with games and gamification features to motivate learning, while also providing several assistive technologies. By leveraging cutting edge language processing and computer vision approaches, the platform will provide augmented reality feedback, 3D avatars and an LLM-based virtual instructor, as part of the learning environment. VISTA-SL is developed in collaboration with end-user focus groups, comprising deaf, hard of hearing and hearing individuals. This will serve to ensure that the educational platform aligns with the expectations and needs of its intended users.}
}

@inproceedings{jahn:22035:sign-lang:lrec,
  author    = {Jahn, Elena and Khan, Calvin and Herrmann, Annika},
  title     = {Outreach and Science Communication in the {DGS-Korpus} Project: Accessibility of Data and the Benefit of Interactive Exchange between Communities},
  pages     = {80--87},
  editor    = {Efthimiou, Eleni and Fotinea, Stavroula-Evita and Hanke, Thomas and Hochgesang, Julie A. and Kristoffersen, Jette and Mesch, Johanna and Schulder, Marc},
  booktitle = {Proceedings of the {LREC2022} 10th Workshop on the Representation and Processing of Sign Languages: Multilingual Sign Language Resources},
  maintitle = {13th International Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation ({LREC} 2022)},
  publisher = {{European Language Resources Association (ELRA)}},
  address   = {Marseille, France},
  day       = {25},
  month     = jun,
  year      = {2022},
  isbn      = {979-10-95546-86-3},
  language  = {english},
  url       = {https://www.sign-lang.uni-hamburg.de/lrec/pub/22035.html},
  abstract  = {In this paper, we tackle the issues of science communication and dissemination within a sign language corpus project with a focus on spreading accessible information and involving the D/deaf community on various levels. We will discuss successful examples, challenges, and limitations to public relations in such a project and particularly elaborate on use cases. The focus group is presented as a best-practice example of a what we think is a necessary perspective: taking external knowledge seriously and let community experts interact with and provide feedback on a par with academic personnel. Showing both social media and on-site events, we present some exemplary approaches from our team involved in public relations.}
}

@inproceedings{herrmann:08015:sign-lang:lrec,
  author    = {Herrmann, Annika},
  title     = {Sign language corpora and the problems with {ELAN} and the {ECHO} annotation conventions},
  pages     = {68--73},
  editor    = {Crasborn, Onno and Efthimiou, Eleni and Hanke, Thomas and Thoutenhoofd, Ernst D. and Zwitserlood, Inge},
  booktitle = {Proceedings of the {LREC2008} 3rd Workshop on the Representation and Processing of Sign Languages: Construction and Exploitation of Sign Language Corpora},
  maintitle = {6th International Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation ({LREC} 2008)},
  publisher = {{European Language Resources Association (ELRA)}},
  address   = {Marrakech, Morocco},
  day       = {1},
  month     = jun,
  year      = {2008},
  language  = {english},
  url       = {https://www.sign-lang.uni-hamburg.de/lrec/pub/08015.html},
  abstract  = {Large corpus projects require logistic, technical and personal expertise and most importantly a conventionalized annotation system. In addition, relatively small projects with a definite set of data can also be an invaluable contribution to linguistic sign language research and therefore should use the same technical methods and annotation conventions for comparative reasons. The poster will present the process of building a corpus that is needed for a cross-linguistic study currently undertaken and focuses on the problems that arise with regard to annotation. The respective solutions shall be suggestions towards a unified convention.
\par
In this project, elicited data from three European sign languages and altogether 20 informants provide a set of approx. 900 sentences and short dialogues. Metadata information about participants and the recording situation will be edited in the IMDI metadata set. ELAN provides the most adequate annotation system for my purposes as the main interest of the study lies in the use of nonmanuals. The tool is widely used for sign language annotation and I try to guarantee for comparability by mainly adopting the ECHO annotation system with a few necessary adaptations.
\par
Problems listed below include repeatedly asked questions that are still not defined clearly yet:
\par
a) How are the on- and offsets of signs determined? Shall we annotate the separate signs or the signing stream integrating the transition period?
\par
b) How should pointing signs or constructions with many meaning components be transcribed?
\par
c) Despite more or less clear definitions of what each tier should be used for, the GLOSS-tier is sometimes intertwined with external information not fitting the tier. How can these problems be avoided?
\par
d) What kinds of disadvantages occur, if the eye gaze and eye blink annotations are not accurate?
\par
Possible Solutions:
\par
a) Even though the on- and offsets of signs can be defined more precisely than for words, the sign syllable not always has clear boundaries. Signing should be annotated as a streaming process that is interrupted when there is a hold or a significant pause. The transition from one sign to the other is often clearly visible through handshape change, which seems to be the more adequate marker for annotation. (The only problem left being sign duration, which cannot entirely be solved by the vague separate sign annotation either.)
\par
b) Proposal for a more detailed distinction of pointing signs without being theoretical (at least IX-1 for signer, IX-dual (excl., incl.) e.g.) and poly-meaning constructions (e.g. BE-LOCATED-CL:vehicle instead of (p-)vehicle-be-located; BLEAK instead of (p-)bleaking sheep when SHEEP is already introduced, decision between HOLD-CL:potato and HOLD-CL:round object).
\par
c) The GLOSS tier should only be used for manual signs or gestures, nonmanuals should not be included (*WALK- PURPOSEFUL). An additional tier is useful: other NMFs/look/other facial expressions
\par
d) Continuous eye gaze and eye aperture annotation is necessary to exactly determine eye gaze change with or without an eye blink and the duration and timing of blinks. This can especially be relevant for prosodic analysis.}
}