When reading the articles, and then reading them again, I can understand the overall struggle that Dowdy and Delpit were putting forth, pertaining to their speaking in their mother tongue and speaking Standard English. In some way I can agree with both of them on how their language should not coin them as being “stupid”, but the big problem we have had always in our society is that you will never be able to convince everyone that it is acceptable. I do applaud them though on their expressive concern for their own language.
While reading Delpit’s article I started to think about how her daughter Maya was able to pick up on Ebonics so quickly, which is how many people whom transition from the North to the South, or visa versa, pick up on different dialect. I am not saying they are the same exact thing, but different dialect (language) is all around us, and people can choose to adapt to it if that is what they would like to do.
I can remember what is was like for me to go away to college and have to fix my Upper Michigan “Yooper” dialect, where words starting with “th” usually made the “d” sound (e.g. saying “dat” instead of “that”) or saying “aboot” instead of “about”. While attending college, people from other states would comment on my strong accent. I had never noticed I had an accent, nor did I ever write how I talked, but as people started to point it out, I started to notice it more. I was slightly embarrassed, just as Dowdy was when she was playing cricket with her friends and shouted “over there” instead of “ovuh dyuh”. I made sure to correct my poor language until I did not have this problem anymore. Then I moved down “South”, where that language/vocabulary is different from that of the “North”. People could pick me out right away as a “Northerner”, but I also adapted my language to the “South” so I could better communicate with my students in the classroom. (e.g. asking students to cut the light off instead of asking them to simply turn the lights off, as we would say in the North).
I agree with Delpit, for the most part, when she suggested having the teacher create curriculum around the student’s interest. Her example might not be something that we can relate to, but I think and understand that she it trying to help us understand both her feelings as a mother, wanting her daughter to speak Standard English, and her thoughts as an educator, on how we can better help relate to our students, making them more at ease to want to learn.
In Dowdy’s article, I feel she was trying to give us an understanding of how people functioned in a colonized society and the struggles that one may go through to “fit in”. Again, I feel as if I can relate to her in a small sense, since I use certain dialect when talking to students and their parents to get my point across easier (e.g. your child was cuttin’ up today), but when I go see my family and friends in Michigan I constantly catch myself about to say something “Southern” and quickly have to convert it to “Northern” terms (e.g. he was acting out today) to they understand me.
To get back to Delpit and her concern for teachers not incorporating enough student interest in with their curriculum, I feel that we have come along way with this. I do not quite agree with her that we should allow our children to continue to use poor grammar/language in the classroom. I currently teach first grade and feel that they are very influenced by imitation. I do not correct them if they say a word slightly wrong, but I may repeat a phrase for them to hear it stated correctly and act as if I am just confirming what they have stated or asked me. This is to make sure that students hear the language and hopefully through reading well written text, and hearing it modeled will allow for them to imitate and hopefully develop a stronger language base.
Barbara Terauds
Comments (2)
There are two big issues here that we musn’t lose sight of. First, the ability to code switch as required should be viewed as a valuable tool and asset. If you were a litigator, a negotiator, or a counselor, you would certainly use different styles of language to achieve your intended purpose. If you are bilingual, you will use the language needed to communicate with those around you. In my view, these examples are no different than code switching between Standard English at school, your intimate tongue at home, and possibly Ebonics with your friends. The switch between codes does not in any way denigrate or malign your innate cultural beliefs or standards. The ability to code switch demonstrates how clever and adaptable one is to be able to communicate in more than one mode. If people on the outside think less of you because of the codes you use, that’s their problem. The stigma that may be perceived by some is only your problem if you let it be. I was an exchange student in eight grade. I traveled to live in Norway not knowing any of the language. I worked hard, and quickly picked up reading, writing, and speaking abilities that allowed me to participate in the regular classroom. I never felt my American English was any less worthy. I made many semantical mistakes. Kids laughed at me. But I laughed right along with them. I was bound to make mistakes, and was determined not to let it get me down. All in all, the kids I made friends with appreciated my efforts to communicate, even if it gave them a good laugh now and then.
The second important issue is the marginalization of colonized people. No one wants to be “other”. No one wants the innate and intimate details of our characters and personal cultures to be undermined by another domineering culture. In the Far East, many cultures came together with the spirit of tolerance and cohabitation to live together, trade ideas, innovations, and share vital knowledge in order to make life better for all people. The culture of Islam was a good example of one conquering people allowing those subjugated individuals to retain their own religion, customs, language, while still sharing the best of the best influences (architecture, science, and literature which are still apparent today) with the less dominant societies. So I think this all boils down to involvement, communication, and tolerance. Exclusionary practices must be left behind, and inclusion for all people, all students in a classroom should be the ideal. This can only happen with an atmosphere of sincerity, trust, and sensitivity. We are all different, but we are more similar than we care to admit. Fitting in may not always be entirely possible, but belonging as a part of the whole is certainly attainable.
Annie Croon
Posted by Annie Croon | June 9, 2009 9:25 AM
Posted on June 9, 2009 09:25
I agree that we should not label someone as 'stupid' because of the way they talk. As educators we should strive to eliminate this stereotype in our minds. However, we must recognize that this stereotype exists in the minds of many people in the world and if we do not instruct our students in the 'right' way to talk they will not have the opportunities they deserve in life.
Posted by Shannon Keough | June 9, 2009 9:25 AM
Posted on June 9, 2009 09:25