ebonics in education for social justice

[stellarborg]

The idea that Standard English must be constantly defended against marauders is an example of what linguists call “dominant language ideology,” and even well-intentioned, otherwise open-minded people display it without noticing. For instance, every semester, Wheeler gives her students, who are training to become teachers themselves, a sample essay from a 3rd grader. It’s written in African-American Vernacular English—better known as “Ebonics”—and includes phrases like “mama Jeep run out of gas” and “she walk yesterday.”

The first response from her students is always the same: The writer doesn’t understand possession, he’s failing to show subject-verb agreement, he’s struggling with basic concepts. “Truly 100 percent of my students who have not studied linguistics think this is a child who lacks the capacity for complex thought and writing,” Wheeler says.

It's only after she explains the patterns of vernacular speech—AAVE - African-American Vernacular English, — that her students finally understand that “she walk yesterday” isn’t a mistake. A child who says “mama Jeep run out of gas” hasn't failed to indicate possession. He's simply using a different set of rules to do it.

Over the last few decades, it’s become clear just how insidious dominant language ideology can be. “This way of thinking,” Wheeler says, “permeates our school system, our textbooks, our tests and our teacher education.”

http://highline.huffingtonpost.com/articles/en/ebonics/

 

[Stoic1]

Say Huffpo you?

 

[RIPWarrior]

English is indeed white and oppressive. White people that don't use ebonics are clearly racist, yo.

 

[MicroBrew]

Ok? So what's the problem?

This is a college course preparing would-be teachers. So it makes sense to educate them on how best to communicate and understand with their future pupils. No different to giving college students , who want to teach in a heavily Spanish speaking area, a primer on Spanish and Mexican vernacular.

 

[RIPWarrior]

Ok? So what's the problem?

This is a college course preparing would-be teachers. So it makes sense to educate them on how best to communicate and understand with their future pupils. No different to giving college students , who want to teach in a heavily Spanish speaking area, a primer on Spanish and Mexican vernacular.

Sweet Jesus!

How is AAVE going to help black people get out of the ghetto?

Have black people realized progress is their enemy yet?

 

[Necromantic]

Ok? So what's the problem?

This is a college course preparing would-be teachers. So it makes sense to educate them on how best to communicate and understand with their future pupils. No different to giving college students , who want to teach in a heavily Spanish speaking area, a primer on Spanish and Mexican vernacular.

Ebonics is not another language like Spanish. It is an incorrect version of English.
Imagine if Physics teachers were to teach incorrect physics to appease SJWs.

Educators are supposed to educate people. Not correcting their mistakes is only going to make the students not able to excel as easily....and stay on those sweet sweet democrat handouts.

 

[Willy Womack]

Huh? Not surprising considering the source. I understand language is fluid but that doesn't seem like something that we should promote.

I went to middle school and high school in Southern NM. Whites were very much a minority. Despite the quality of those schools (shit funding) they still taught proper English, and from what I saw only the dullest of potatoes couldn't grasp it. Many who weren't even native speakers learned just fine. I'm not sure why some of these liberals think dumbing down our country is a good idea, or why they frequently hold blacks to a different standard. I guess I have more faith than they do (the great irony of the unintentionally patronizing liberal).

For the record I'm pretty close to fluent in Spanish. If either of those example sentences were written in proper Spanish there would be no confusion regarding possession and tense. That said I suppose context is more important with some words, such as "su".

 

[snakedafunky]

Who cares what "Untermenschen Geschnatter" you teach in your "schools" these days.
You had the chance to vote in a real language back in 1795 but you blew it.
Going to have to pay the price now.

 

[Necromantic]

Who gains by blacks not being as prepared to succeed as they could be???
The republicans who don't want to give out handouts, don't want crime, and to my knowledge have not made racist laws
Or
Democrats who have a history of keeping blacks down, segregating them, and keeping them as dependent as they can on government cheese???

MLK was a republican. Al Sharpton is a democrat. Nuff said.

 

[FIMN]

The daily thinly veiled black-bashing thread is here I see.

 

[RIPWarrior]

Seriously find out where AAVE is primarily spoken and eradicate it with some basic education.

 

[Terry Noonan]

Happy BORN DAY
GUCCI
LIT
FAM
100

Because normal English is difficult and only the rich can afford a free education through the age of 18 where you learn to speak and write.

 

[RIPWarrior]

The daily thinly veiled black-bashing thread is here I see.

Pathetic. We're clearly bashing progress.

 

[RIPWarrior]

Happy BORN DAY
GUCCI
LIT
FAM

woke

 

[MicroBrew]

Sweet Jesus!

How is AAVE going to help black people get out of the ghetto?

Have black people realized progress is their enemy yet?

If you could put your knee-jerk hatred away, you will understand that we are not talking about replacing English with Ebonics in grade school, middle school and highschool. This is a course for COLLEGE students WHO PLAN ON becoming teachers.

For teachers to effectively impart their knowledge, connecting with and motivating students is a huge plus. Any skills that enable teachers to connect with their students is a huge plus. If the students are prone to using Ebonics, then it is beneficial for the teacher to also be familiar with it. Just as it is beneficial for a teacher, who teaches in a school with a large number of Spanish speaking students, to be familiar with Spanish.

 

[RIPWarrior]

If you could put your knee-jerk hatred away, you will understand that we are not talking about replacing English with Ebonics in grade school, middle school and highschool. This is a course for COLLEGE students WHO PLAN ON becoming teachers.

For teachers to effectively impart their knowledge, connecting with and motivating students is a huge plus. Any skills that enable teachers to connect with their students is a huge plus. If the students are prone to using Ebonics, then it is beneficial for the teacher to also be familiar with it. Just as it is beneficial for a teacher, who teaches in a school with a large number of Spanish speaking students, to be familiar with Spanish.

No these kids should be taught proper English.

 

[RIPWarrior]

A teacher should never encounter ebonics, especially in High School and beyond.

 

[weed]

 

[MicroBrew]

Ebonics is not another language like Spanish. It is an incorrect version of English.
Imagine if Physics teachers were to teach incorrect physics to appease SJWs.

Educators are supposed to educate people. Not correcting their mistakes is only going to make the students not able to excel as easily....and stay on those sweet sweet democrat handouts.

I didn't say it was another language. I was pointing out that just as an educator who teaches Spanish speaking kids will benefit from knowing Spanish, so to an educator who teaches kids that speak Ebonics will benefit from knowing Ebonics. It is about being able to communicate with and connect with your students as effectively as 1 can.

You are also wrong in stating it is an "incorrect version". Ebonics is a Dialect. Linguists have studied it and have concluded it has its own set of rules and grammar, that it isn't something concocted on-the-fly by a Black person who is at a loss for words.

Ebonics is to American English what various regional dialects in the England, such as Cockney and Scouse, are to standard BBC English. American English itself could be considered a dialect of English English.

 

[JudoThrowFiasco]

Pretty sure the public support for this would be the same as it was in Oakland in 96'. Cultural vernacular is aspect of most groups within the US. However, schools in Boston probably did not let 'yous guys' slide on an essay and schools in Brooklyn didn't let 'whats-a-matter you, shut uppa your face' as a acceptable on a test.

"Proper English" has never really been a thoroughly taught skill in the US but your current system is a pretty solid bar to judge everyone by. If people want to colloquially speak to each other in whatever pattern they want, that's fine, but there should be a proper unified standard that everyone should formally know.

Now if they can use AAVE as some sort of nicotine patch to wean off black kids from ebonics and help them learn proper American English, then they should look into that option.