RES 5530: Race, Class, and Gender in Literacy Research (Spring 2009)

Even though I've never fully experienced the same issue, I understand Delpit's concern that African-American children hesitate to speak because they are worried of what others will think. In some way, everyone who speaks a dialect other than standard English has a fear that they'll be ostracized in a society they so desperately want to fit in to. I wish she had mentioned non-standard English speakers as a whole, like Judith Baker did in her chapter, although I understand you have to "write what you know." I have felt this fear myself many times, although my fear comes from saying something unintelligent in a classroom full of deep, intellectual people, saying something that others disagree with, or speaking up only to be interrupted. It's not the same, I know, but it is a slight connection, and I have felt it often, especially in honors/AP classes in high school/college.

Perhaps I'm interpreting this chapter all wrong, but I didn't like how she described classrooms: "students rarely get to talk in classrooms...children are taught through worksheets or textbooks that make no reference to their lived experiences...teachers seldom know much about the children's lives...or aren't willing to connect instruction to issues that matter" (pages 40-41). There are so many teachers whose style is the complete opposite of this description. I can't think of a single teacher I know who doesn't allow student communication or who doesn't allow room in the curriculum for flexibility. Sure, there are teachers who make this stereotype a reality; we are all imperfect teachers, but many of us don't get into the profession for the reasons she mentioned.

That said, I wholeheartedly agree that students who feel comfortable, safe, and accepted in any environment will flourish in the subject area, be it language, literature, science, etc. I think it goes without saying that when humans feel their safety or comfort compromised, we put up a wall and block out anything new. Fight or flight, right? My favorite line in Delpit's chapter was, "their not achieving is not the way things should be, but a serious break in the history of the world" (pg. 46). I loved this. It is my hope that we can convince ALL students, regardless of their race, gender, whatever, that they are in a long line of learners, and that what they learn in school today affects their future. So powerful. I fully appreciated Baker's tips for making non-standard English speakers feel more comfortable. This would work wonderfully in a more diverse classroom; however in a classroom like mine where 99.9% are white, it might draw unwanted attention to those students who are "different."

I did enjoy reading and learning more about Ebonics from Delpit's point of view. I'd like to learn more about how their African root language has evolved to make this new dialect. Being from SC originally, I am familiar with the Gullah language, and boy is THAT fascinating. I'd like to learn more about the ties between the two.

Regarding the "permission to fail" chapter...this scared me. I wonder how many times I have inadvertently done this to a student. I thought about my 2 Hispanic students in this chapter. Because of the language barrier and the fact that (at the moment) I have no ESL teacher to help me, there are just things I cannot explain to them. Also, because of the speed in which the class moves and the prior knowledge needed to succeed, I sometimes let them off the hook for doing certain activities. I worry I'm giving them "permission to fail," but I don't really know what else to do...

Christy Rivers
(sorry for the long post...there were so many ideas spinning around in my head!:))