SimboWika: A Mobile and Web Application to Learn Filipino Sign Language for Deaf Students in Elementary Schools Nico Ace A. Empe College of Computing and Information Technologies National University Manila, Philippines empenaa@students.national-u.edu.ph Patrick Lenard C. Paterno College of Computing and Information Technologies National University Manila, Philippines paternopc@students.national-u.edu.ph Raniel Cyrus L. Echon College of Computing and Information Technologies National University Manila, Philippines echonrcl@students.national-u.edu.ph Marilou N. Jamis College of Computing and Information Technologies National University Manila, Philippines mnjamis@national-u.edu.ph Herson Dave A. Vega College of Computing and Information Technologies National University Manila, Philippines vegahda@students.national-u.edu.ph Emeliza R. Yabut College of Computing and Information Technologies National University Manila, Philippines eryabut@national-u.edu.ph Abstract—The communication between deaf and hearing people is hard especially when you consider the lack of technology and knowledge on language that the deaf people use. The population of the Philippines is increasing and so are the deaf people. The communication gap between these people are also expanding. English is the commonly use language by most people with hearing disabilities. American Sign Language (ASL) is considered as a renowned sign language in the Philippines but this is not the official language of the country. Most Filipinos are not aware of the existence of Filipino Sign Language (FSL). This is an American Sign Language-inspired and designed specifically for Filipinos. Deaf students in one elementary school in Manila were confused in learning Tagalog words because the sign language that had been established back then was American Sign Language (ASL). With this drawback, the researchers aimed to develop “SimboWika”, a mobile application to help the deaf students in elementary schools to learn Filipino Sign Language. It provides illustrations to practice FSL and assess student’s learning. The teachers can also keep track of the student’s progress using its web application. Based on findings, the SimboWika app got a Very Satisfactory result from the users and technical evaluation. Keywords— SimboWika, Filpino Sign Language, FSL, deaf, Sign Language, Filipino Signs I. INTRODUCTION In the Philippines, 3 out of 1000 Filipinos are deaf. In applying this on the country’s current population, the estimated population of the deaf is probably around 300,000 out of the current approximated populace of 100,000,000 [20]. Most hearing people have difficulties to tell who among have hearing disability. It is hardly to recognize when people see them at first because they are physically normal. The only time that people can distinguish their incapacity when they start communicating using their learned sign language [24]. Deaf people in certain cases are also mute, which makes the communication much harder for them. People with Disabilities (PWDs) were more likely defenseless because of the lack of access to basic needs. Moreover, there were 60 percent of local government units in the Philippines had an office for person with disability [33]. The lack of deaf representation affects the accessibility for their basic necessities and demands. With the use of technology for persons with disability, it can maximize their ability and learning things on their own and can overall improve their quality of life. It is reported that over 150 million school-aged children with disability were kept out or denied when it comes to education. So in a way of developing an online educational environment for the deaf people, it will eventually improve the learning quality not just for the deaf, but also for people who have interest in learning sign language. Also, this might be the dominant solution to address the issue and boost their learning capacity, effectiveness, and satisfaction effectively [16]. Breaking the communication barrier between deaf and people without disability is hard considering the lack of technology and knowledge in the language used. Usually, hearing people do not mind the significance of learning sign language and not consider the benefits of having this skill. The population in the Philippines is increasing, and so are the deaf people. The communication gap between the hearing people and the deaf is likewise growing. Most deaf people used English as their commonly used language. American Sign Language or widely known as ASL is considered as renowned sign language in the Philippines, but not as the official language. Most people in the Philippines are not aware of the existence of Filipino Sign Language (FSL). This sign language is uniquely designed for Filipinos and inspired by ASL. According to Legarda Elementary School in Manila, deaf students were confused in learning different Tagalog words, and they were having a hard time understanding their Filipino subject. The sign language established and taught back then was ASL. There are some typical Filipino Sign Language applications that were currently available. The FSL Buddy mobile application shows primary sign language by category. It illustrated using gif to provide a clear and proper way of signing it [11]. There is another app called the Filipino Sign Language, an android application where the basics can be learned, such as alphabets and numbers. This application also includes the National Anthem of the Philippines in FSL way [13]. With all these related applications, it proved that it can help people to learn the proper use of different signs. Therefore, the research team developed a mobile and web application named "SimboWika" to help the deaf community