These articles initially reminded me of my friend Erika. She is black and like Lisa Delpit’s daughter, she grew up in a very white neighborhood going to a Catholic school where she was the only African American. She learned to speak “white,” as she explained to me. Then, she went to Northwestern University and joined a black sorority and made friends who she felt entirely comfortable with. Erika is a sincere person who feels at home with people of different races, but she understands the need to shift her language when she’s at work, with her white friends, or with her black friends. I was intrigued when we had this conversation a few years ago but these texts helped me understand what she was feeling and how her success might be partially contributed to her ability to “be in two places at the same time, ovuh dyuh and here too, and not give any indication that her attention is divided” (Dowdy, 11).
In fact, our conversation started when I asked her what “code-switching” was. She had used it to describe someone and I quickly asked her to explain the term. Delpit’s daughter has a point when she states that this skill will aid her in getting a certain job or getting into a college she wants to attend. In the video, it is evident that President Obama has this skill, and while it is useful to be successful, it is important in a different way to those who share his cultural heritage. They want to know that he has not forgotten who he is.
Unfortunately, people do judge based on the words that you speak. This reminds me of a story a friend told me once. She was in a car with her mother and they were waiting for a parking space when a woman cut them off and turned into the space as soon as a car was pulling out. When the woman got out of the car, my friend’s mother angrily confronted her saying that it was rude for her to cut her off when she was obviously waiting for the space. The woman responded by telling how she had followed the lady who left the space to her car. She said, “I axed her for the space.” My friend’s mother repeated haughtily, “You AXED her?” Needless to say, my friend was mortified by her mother’s actions. The woman corrected her language and replied embarrassingly, “I asked her for the space.” I can’t imagine how that woman felt that day. Or what judgments my friend’s mom held. I do believe that people judge others if they do not speak the English Standard form of dialect. Michelle Obama openly tells how her speech has helped her achieve success. She might have been ridiculed as a child, but she wouldn’t have gotten to be where she is if she did not speak the accepted English Standard form of speech. I wonder who encouraged Michelle Obama to learn to speak properly. Joanne Dowdy did it to please her mother. But she learned that once she earned the respect of those around her, she realized that it was then that she could let herself be who she wanted to be. She earned the right to be outspoken and learned to embrace her heritage in a way that would not offend anyone. She could cater to anyone…and in that, she was extremely powerful. Yet I am still curious…is it more important to preserve your ancestry, or is it more important to succeed in the world?
Delpit makes an important point at the conclusion of her article. People will only adopt the English Standard form of language if they feel that they themselves are respected. Therefore, it is essential that a teacher embrace a child’s personal culture and background, while trying to teach them to speak in a way that will allow them to be the most successful in society.
-- Carrie Brown
Comments (8)
Reading your post allowed me to think a little deeper and differently about code-switching. I appreciated you acknowledging that code-switching is a method enabling minorities to remind those around them that they haven't forgotten who they are and where they came from. If a person is able to code-switch, it grants them a power to succeed and direct how others view them. In answering your question, I think it is important for a person to find the balance between the two. Just as Michelle Obama stated, learning the King's English enabled her success that empowered her, but it is evident that she was still able to preserve her background and culture, which I hope she continues to instill within her daughters behind closed doors out of the public eye. This background and the success that a person achieves begins to mold a person as he or she moves forward. This same person can look back and see how far he or she has come with appreciation of how he or she arrived there.
Posted by Melissa Riley | June 6, 2011 11:10 PM
Posted on June 6, 2011 23:10
Carrie, I love your question towards the end of your post: "Is it more important to preserve your ancestry, or is it more important to succeed in the world?" I think that Delpit's article was attempting to show that what we really need is a balance between the two. Like she suggested, we can use the children's culture and ancestry to teach the skills they need to succeed in the world. I think this is a very tough balance to find, especially since our classrooms are expanding to include many Asian, Hispanic, and African cultures as well. Like you said, we don't want our students to forget where they came from. Hopefully with teacher acceptance and celebration of their heritage, we can help our students to succeed and find a balance between languages like your friend Erika was able to do.
Posted by Andrea Schlobohm | June 7, 2011 8:58 AM
Posted on June 7, 2011 08:58
Carrie, I enjoyed reading your real life example of code-switching. It's wonderful that you and your friend can have such open and honest conversations. I guess to some degree we all adjust our speech or code-switch based on where we are or who we are around. I certainly talk differently when I am at work compared to when I am with my friends. We are judged by others, sometimes harshly as in your friend’s mom situation, by how we talk. It seems to also be true that people in powerful positions most often have mastered Standard English and receive the assumption of being well-educated. It is a fine line we must walk as educators to be respectful of cultures yet still stress the importance behind mastering Standard English.
Posted by Ruth Ann Timmons | June 7, 2011 9:20 PM
Posted on June 7, 2011 21:20
I was really intrigued by your question: is it more important to preserve your ancestry, or is it more important to succeed in the world? As I mulled it over, I found myself asking another question: Is it even possible to be really successful in the world if you do not take some pride in your culture or ancestry? It seems to me that people I know who are most successful are also the most grounded people, people who are comfortable with who they are and with "where they came from." I think it is a real challenge to help our students learn to walk that fine line.
Posted by Marlee Wright | June 7, 2011 10:32 PM
Posted on June 7, 2011 22:32
I was really intrigued by your question: is it more important to preserve your ancestry, or is it more important to succeed in the world? As I mulled it over, I found myself asking another question: Is it even possible to be really successful in the world if you do not take some pride in your culture or ancestry? It seems to me that people I know who are most successful are also the most grounded people, people who are comfortable with who they are and with "where they came from." I think it is a real challenge to help our students learn to walk that fine line.
Posted by Marlee Wright | June 7, 2011 10:33 PM
Posted on June 7, 2011 22:33
What a provocative post, Carrie! I have to agree with Marlee and Andrea and say that I thought about your question, too. Most people I know who can move in and out of different social worlds with ease are some of the most confident people I know. So I think that confidence is a result of this ability to be accepted for whatever language one might use in the given situation. It is such an interesting dynamic, as the readings and your examples show!
Posted by Dr. Jackson | June 9, 2011 10:33 AM
Posted on June 9, 2011 10:33
Carrie,
I think you hit the nail on the head about accent and vernacular. The Obama's are a prime example. they are extremely well grounded in their culture and are very prideful of their heritage. Even so, the Obama's have different voices. They can lapse into their cultural language and switch back into their speaking voice. They were motivated to learn to switch and knew it would one day contribute to their success.
Posted by candace kee | June 10, 2011 9:53 AM
Posted on June 10, 2011 09:53
I see our ESL students trying their best with standard English, yet when they leave school they are once again immersed in their culture. So, both are actually taking place; learning to succeed in the world AND preserving their ancestry.
Posted by Carol Holt | June 11, 2011 10:38 AM
Posted on June 11, 2011 10:38