Skills for Life: British Sign Language
British Sign Language is a Pearson Skills for Life unit in which learners learn fingerspelling, greetings, Wh- questions, numbers, time, dates and directions in BSL, and learn about Deaf awareness, Deaf culture in Wales and Deaf inclusion. It is one 20 hour unit that learners combine with others into a Pearson Skills for Life or Skills for Work Award, Certificate or Diploma, from Entry 1 to Level 2, assessed internally by the centre. Digital demand is low because no assessment criterion asks for digital work. Digital skills sit in learning signs from online BSL dictionaries, apps and video clips, researching Deaf culture, capturing signed evidence and referencing sources and AI.
- Awarding body
- Pearson
- Level
- Entry Level 1 to Level 2
- Guided learning hours
- 20
- First taught
- September 2027
- Amount of digital work
- Low
- Specification
- Open the specification
How this unit is assessed
- Entry Level (Entry 1, Entry 2, Entry 3): One assessment criterion at each of Entry 1, Entry 2 and Entry 3, moving from stating the role of BSL in the Deaf community and using basic fingerspelling and signs, to outlining Deaf awareness and short exchanges, to identifying aspects of Deaf culture and short conversations. Evidence is internally assessed by the centre, which sets and marks the assessment, and quality assured by Pearson through standards verification. 20 guided learning hours. Graded Pass or Fail.
- Level 1 and Level 2: One assessment criterion at each of Level 1 and Level 2: describing aspects of Deaf communication and using BSL in everyday conversation, then explaining aspects of inclusive Deaf communication and using more detailed BSL. Evidence is internally assessed by the centre, which sets and marks the assessment, and quality assured by Pearson through standards verification. 20 guided learning hours. Graded Pass or Fail.
The digital skills in this qualification
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Learning signs from online BSL dictionaries, apps and video clips
Learners build their sign vocabulary for greetings, numbers, vehicles, days of the week and directions, and Pearson's cross-curricular mapping names online BSL dictionaries, apps and video clips as the digital link for this unit. Using these sources supports every level from Entry 1 to Level 2, but the assessment criteria do not require it, so it is taught, not assessed.
DCF: Sourcing, searching and planning digital content
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils search an online BSL dictionary for the signs for five classroom objects, watch each video clip and bookmark the pages to practise later.
- Year 8
- Pupils use a BSL app to find the signs for days of the week and the numbers 1 to 20, and refine their search when a word gives several regional signs.
- Year 9
- Pupils compare how two online BSL dictionaries show the same sign, note any regional differences, and build a bookmarked folder of trusted sign resources for a topic.
Show the specification wording and the DCF statements
Where it is in the specification: Unit SfL 3, Annexe C: Evidence for Units mapped against Curriculum for Wales Cross-curricular skills frameworks, Digital Links, page 160
“Online BSL dictionaries, apps, video clips”
Progression step 3
I can adjust keywords and search techniques to find relevant information.
I can store search results for future use, e.g. bookmark, add to favourites.
Progression step 4
I can search a variety of sources using relevant search techniques with increased complexity.
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Researching Deaf culture and inclusion in Wales
Level 1 learners give at least two examples of Deaf culture in Wales and Level 2 learners give at least three, alongside the role of interpreters, allyship and workplace inclusion. The criteria require the knowledge, not the method, so learners will often find it online, but checking the reliability of those sources is taught, not assessed.
DCF: Sourcing, searching and planning digital content
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils use given keywords to find one Deaf club, event or organisation in Wales online and record its name, place and website address.
- Year 8
- Pupils search for examples of Deaf art or sign poetry from Wales, note who made each one and decide whether the website is a reliable source.
- Year 9
- Pupils research three examples of Deaf culture in Wales from different websites, compare how reliable each source is and justify which they would use in a fact file.
Show the specification wording and the DCF statements
Where it is in the specification: Unit SfL 3, Essential information for assessment decisions, Level 1 and Level 2, page 23
“They consider how Deaf culture looks in Wales including at least three examples.”
Progression step 3
I can adjust keywords and search techniques to find relevant information.
I can begin to reference sources used in my work, and consider if content is reliable.
Progression step 4
I can evaluate the reliability of sources of information, justify my opinions and reasons for choices, and reference using appropriate methods.
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Capturing signed conversations as evidence
Signing is live, so evidence that learners have fingerspelled, signed and held conversations must be captured for the assessor, the internal verifier and the Pearson Standards Verifier. The specification lists observation records, witness testimony and products of learners' work and leaves the choice to the centre, so video recording is a common option but not a requirement.
DCF: Creating digital content, Storing and sharing
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils film a partner fingerspelling their name on a tablet, trim the clip and save it with a clear file name in a class folder.
- Year 8
- Pupils record a short signed exchange in pairs, add a caption with the English meaning, and move the clip into a shared portfolio folder.
- Year 9
- Pupils record a signed role play, edit it into one clip with titles, and share it with their teacher using a link with the correct viewing permissions.
Show the specification wording and the DCF statements
Where it is in the specification: Section 4, Internal assessment, page 9; Unit SfL 3, Essential information for assessment decisions, page 22
“Evidence must be available to the assessor, the internal verifier, and the Pearson Standards Verifier.”
Progression step 3
I can use a range of software to select, produce and edit a range of multimedia components for a purpose, such as:
- text and images, e.g. format text (bold, underline, italics, highlight); insert and edit text boxes; columns; use refine tools (spellchecker, find and replace); word wrap; crop; alter size and shape; alter images; add effects; trim and split sound and video clips; transitions; onion skin
- presentation, e.g. page orientation; animations; transitions; remove and alter images; use background; use action buttons to create hyperlink; embed objects.
I can manage files and folders locally or online, e.g. move files to a folder.
Progression step 4
I can select and use a variety of appropriate software, tools and techniques to create, modify and combine multimedia components for a range of audiences and purposes, such as:
- text and images, e.g. explore and use effectively image manipulation techniques; explore and use appropriately the many aspects of document layout; use animation, video and audio effects such as echo, tempo, envelope, layering, frame rate, key frames
- presentation, e.g. use design tools; adapt themes and colours to suit the purpose; create master templates.
I can manage links to files, taking permissions and file locations into account, e.g. some file storage systems will utilise dynamic hyperlinks so that if a file location is changed the links remain intact, whereas changing file location could result in a broken hyperlink.
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Referencing sources and acknowledging AI
At every level learners must certify that their evidence is their own and reference any sources and any AI tools they used, for example websites about Deaf culture. Using AI without acknowledging it is malpractice, so this is a requirement of every submission.
DCF: Digital rights, licensing and ownership, Sourcing, searching and planning digital content
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils add a simple list of the websites they used to the end of a fact sheet about BSL, with the page title and address for each.
- Year 8
- Pupils discuss when using an AI chatbot to explain Deaf awareness would be plagiarism, and write one sentence acknowledging any AI help in their work.
- Year 9
- Pupils reference every source in a short report on Deaf inclusion using a set format, and add a note stating exactly how any AI tool was used.
Show the specification wording and the DCF statements
Where it is in the specification: Unit SfL 3, Requirements relating to permitted/prohibited resources, page 24
“they have clearly referenced any sources and any artificial intelligence used”
Progression step 3
I can understand that copying the work of others and presenting it as my own is plagiarism.
I can cite sources when researching and explain the importance of this, e.g. create simple lists for the referencing of digital and offline sources.
Progression step 4
I can evaluate the reliability of sources of information, justify my opinions and reasons for choices, and reference using appropriate methods.
Good to know
- The unit is Unit SfL 3, listed in the unit summary as "SfL 3 British Sign Language (BSL) 20" guided learning hours (Unit summary, page 5).
- Unlike every other Pearson unit, BSL "can be retaken at multiple levels in order to achieve a higher level", but "GLH will only contribute to the overall qualification claim once" (Rules of Combination, page 6; Assessment of units, page 9). This differs from the WJEC unit, where each level achieved counts towards the qualification GLH.
- The unit content is not printed in the specification: it "can be found in the Teaching and Learning Support document for this unit" (Unit content, page 22), so centres need that document to plan teaching.
- Evidence is flexible: "there are no mandatory evidence requirements and centres can select the type of evidence" (Essential information for assessment decisions, page 22), and evidence can include "observation records, witness testimony, and products of learners' work" (Internal assessment, page 9).
- The Authorised Assignment Brief is optional, but if it is used, "Task 2 on the AAB is summative and can only be attempted when the course content has been covered" (Unit content, page 22). The same paragraph refers to "the A1 component" without defining it anywhere in the specification.
- AI tools must be acknowledged: "A learner will have committed malpractice if they use AI tools without acknowledging them" (Requirements relating to permitted/prohibited resources, page 24).
- Level 1 and Level 2 require knowledge of Deaf culture in Wales, at least three examples at Level 2 (Essential information for assessment decisions, page 23). The Level 1 guidance contains a typing slip, "mouthing. lip-reading" (page 23).
Links with other qualifications
The closest comparison is the WJEC Skills for Life unit British Sign Language, which is also 20 hours. The WJEC unit is organised into six learning outcomes (meeting people, fingerspelling, numbers, weather, transport and directions) and each level achieved adds GLH, while Pearson has a single criterion per level, puts more weight on Deaf awareness, Deaf culture in Wales and inclusion, and counts the GLH only once however many levels are taken. The Deaf inclusion, allyship and interpreter content links to the WJEC GCSE in Health and Social Care, and Childcare and to Social Studies, and Pearson's own mapping links the communication skills to careers in education, health and social care.
Source: Pearson Entry Level 1 to Level 2 Skills for Life Award, Certificate and Diploma Qualifications specification, Issue 1, August 2026, Unit SfL 3: British Sign Language (BSL).