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December 03, 2005
Chapter 3
Comments
Most black people love and use aspects of Ebonics at all times because they are "with their own" and "revel in rhythmns of cadences of connection." However, many feel oppressed by society, and when around white people they switch to a more "proper" way of talking. I understood how Delpit's daughter, Maya was feeling. It was one thing to be the only black girl in a "proper all white private school," but she also had to tackle with the language barrier. When you don't fit in, it is onlly natural for one to question themeselves. I went through a period of self questioning myself. It is hard for people who are not the minority to understand this.
Language has a major influential role in society. When society is finally ready to see beyond skin color to access intelectual competence of black people regardless of how they speak, the world will be a better, more accepting place. Code-switching is a coping mechanism in which they switch between forms of speech.
After various experiments, it was determined that unconscious acquisition is more effective when a student is motivated. Furthermore, students don't identify with teachers who question their intellegence or with a curriculum that ignores their existence. They have little opportunity to speak up and when they do they are worried about being corrected.
Standard dialects are embedded in instruction that has little connection to children's cultural lives and personal interests. In areas that do not bring in the children's various languages or experiences, the children view themselves as defective because their personal feelings are not a part of their education. I believe this is completely true, if the natural language of a child is ignored, how does one expect the child to succeed in an academic environment that supresses their voice?
When instruction is stripped of children's cultural legacies then they are forced to believe that the world and all good things in it were created by others. This leaves students further ailienated from the school and its instructional goals. They are more likely to view themselves as inadequate. Not too long ago, there was a huge debate at Boston University about whether American Sign Language was a true language or not. This is ironic because Boston University has a strong deaf studies program and has a number of deaf students attending. Anyway, I remember being frustrated, and thinking what more does society want to prove that my own, natural language is in fact a language. How dare they question and say that American Sign Language has no culture of its own. They had no basis for the claims they were making. So I feel that I can easily relate to Delpit and her daughter, Maya.
Questions
Why do some people feel that Ebonics is not good enough to be a language.. what is their basis of this judgement?
Why were African American linguistic experts not consulted during the Okland School debates? I would expect these experts to be the primary source of information and resources.
What does it take and what does it mean for a person to "talk right?"
Why do people think of Ebonics as a cognitive deficiency?
Why don't schools in linguistically diverse areas do bi-lingual programs, after all the primary goal of a school should be to meet its students needs.
Posted by lcissearls at December 3, 2005 03:00 PM