Artwork by Jean-Michel Basquiat
Matt Beach
Note: Herein, SE denotes Standard
English; AAVE denotes African-American
Vernacular English.
From Common Core Language Arts
Standards
Read the article,
“What is Literacy?,”
and fill in the blanks.
Who (from what culture—class, race, etc.) do you think
determines “proper” Standard English?
From
The New Oxford
American Dictionary
From
Merriam-Webster’s
Collegiate Dictionary
Notice: “All of the pronunciations recorded in this
book can be documented as falling within the
range of generally acceptable variation.” (my
emphasis)
Notice: “The New Oxford American Dictionary records and
exemplifies the most important of these [lexical and syntactic]
patterns at the relevant senses of each word, thus giving guidance on
language as well as word meaning.”
What is generally acceptable? To whom?
List 10 words of your choice. Look up the same 10 words in each dictionary and jot
down the definitions. What are some differences?
Grammar, semantics, and phonology:
1. Read Walt Wolfram’s “The Grammar of Urban African
American Vernacular English.” (pp. 117-131)
Then, answer these questions.
2. Examine the AAVE phonological chart.
Then, look up 5 words in the Merriam-Webster’s
Dictionary and discuss the differences in pronunciation
between the dictionary (SE) and the chart (AAVE).
1. Hypothesized Origins
of AAVE
Follow the link to study the
terms and definitions related to
the origin of AAVE, play the
games, and take the quiz!
2. Timeline
Follow the link above.
Examine the timeline to fill in
the missing components.
3. Historical Attitudes Regarding AAVE in
Education
Read the passage and note your thoughts: you will need to
explain your stance later.
Is AAVE bad English, or is it different English?
The Bill Cosby Case
The “Do You Speak American?” Case
During the Oakland debates of ‘96
and ‘97, prominent AfricanAmericans, such as Jesse Jackson
(at first), Maya Angelou, Arsenio
Hall, Kwesi Mfume, Shelby Steele,
Eldridge Cleaver, and Henry Louis
Gates, Jr., denounced the use of
AAVE in classrooms.
What is your stance?
Many others supported the
use of AAVE in classrooms.
“The notion of black English in turn connotes the existence of
white English, as the same female staff pointed out: ‘Everybody
has their own dialect and you don’t label that. You don’t label
the way a white person speaks, but you label African
Americans . . .’ Then, all too often, white English becomes
synonymous with ‘standard English’ in spite of the fact that
millions of Euro-Americans speak ‘nonstandard, stigmatized’
dialects. Thus the term ‘standard English’ ‘becomes something
which is divisive, something which suggests superiority,
something which suggests superiority on the part of those who
might have access to this so-called standard English, and then
certainly it suggests inferiority on the part of those who do not
have access, who might speak differently’ (male professor)”
(Speicher & McMahon, 1992).
School English v. Home English
What are your thoughts?
What roles do cultural values play in
communication between teacher and student–
between SE and AAVE?
Write your thoughts here.
v Start here.
v
(Alim, 2011)
How many Hip Hop
expressions can you
name?
Check out this list of some Hip Hop-created linguistic contributions.
How does Saul Williams use and manipulate language to more
fully express his ideas and experiences?
Think about ways the AAVE speech community has struggled to
maintain identity and expressive value in high school language arts or
other classes.
Write a rap or poem that expresses your thoughts. You may draw from
personal experiences or from observations.
Think about how will you express yourself. How can you open up the
English language? What words will you use?
You can make up your own words to more vividly express yourself. Be
as creative as you can!
Write your rap or poem in your journal.
Then, go to the studio to track your record.
Articles:
Alim, H. (2011). Global ill-literacies: Hip hop cultures, youth identities, and the politics of
Review of Research in Education, 35, 120-146.
literacy.
Campbell, K. (2005). Getting’ our groove on: Rhetoric, language, and literacy for the hip hop
generation. Detroit, MI: Wayne State UP.
Ogbu, J. (1999). Beyond language: Ebonics, proper English, and identity in a Black-American
community. American Educational Research Journal, 36(2), 147-184. Retrieved from
http://aer.sagepub.com/
speech
Speicher, B., & McMahon, S. (1992). Some African-American perspectives on Black English
Vernacular. Language in Society, 21(3), 383-407. Retrieved from http://
journals.cambridge.org/action/displayJournal?jid=LSY
Wolfram, W. (2000). The grammar of urban african american vernacular English. Retrieved
http://www.ncsu.edu/linguistics/docs/pdfs/walt/PDF-Urban_AAE.pdf
from
Web URLs:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xX1-FgkfWo8&feature=c-shelf-119
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWIbIA9BltQ&playnext=1&list=PLF67F5B2C81
B0EB8C&feature=results_video
http://www.corestandards.org/the-standards/english-language-arts-standards
http://www.edc.org/newsroom/articles/what_literacy
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/
http://www.urbandictionary.com/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzY2-GRDiPM
http://www.rehabmed.ualberta.ca/spa/phonology/features.htm
http://www.pbs.org/speak/seatosea/americanvarieties/AAVE/timeline/
http://quizlet.com/1274208/aave-flash-cards/
http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/15433
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Unk0OiIitw4
http://www.scribd.com/doc/16522469/List-of-Slang-Used-in-Hiphop-Music
http://www.metrolyrics.com/coded-language-lyrics-saul-williams.html