Black English as a Teacher
In the article Black Language and Education of Black Children: One Mo Once by Geneva
Smitherman, she discusses the topic of Ebonics and how it is not accepted in today’s society.
Smitherman discussed Ebonics, better known as Black English or slang and how Ebonics is not
being used to educate children that speak it. Smitherman mentions that Ebonics is a language that
was formed from West Africa and during the times of slavery; she writes that part of the reason
the language was formed was so that the slave owners would not know when the slaves were
talking about him even if they were standing right in front of him. She also goes into detail about
how Black English has been around for a very long time and has been passed down from
generations to generations. Throughout the article, Smitherman makes a point to show that Black
English is a complex language that has its own structure. She concludes with the idea that, as a
nation, the United States needs to make a multilingual policy so that Black English is recognized
as a language.
As I read this article, I noticed that Smitherman thinks that children that speak Black
English should also be educated in the language because it is their native tongue or at least
exposed to more black literature. She writes, “how come ain none of these of dese black so-call
“leaders” raise no sand bout the lack of literacy among black youth” (Smitherman). In some
respects I agree with Smiterman. I am going into education. I want to be a special education
teacher so I understand the importance of teaching students in their native language and how it
can help them succeed in school and in the future. Part of me believes that we should be
educating students that speak Black English in this language so that they can have a better
understanding of what they are being taught. I also think that exposing them to literature that is
written in their language and connects to their culture would help them learn. Having black
literature available to them could help these student socially as well as cognitively.
On the other hand, I do not think that it is wise to teach these students in this language
because of society and its stereotypes. When I started reading this article, I was surprised to find
that what I saw as slang was actually a language in itself. And just like I did, there are many
Americans who hear someone speaking Black English and think that those people are
uneducated or unintelligent. As sad as that is, I would not want to hinder my students’ chances of
being successful just because they speak a language that the world stereotypes as unintelligent.
The world sees differences as a bad thing. Black English is not unintelligent. It’s brilliant. If
there was a way to eliminate that stereotype so that there would be no prejudices against this
language then I would say that educating these students in their native Black English is an
excellent idea and it will help them succeed.
Another thing that caught my attention as I was reading, is that Smitherman reports that
many teachers in the public schools system have misconceptions about black children.
Smitherman talks about a researcher named Dr. Bailey who “myths and misconceptions that
teachers had about black children’s abilities and called for revisions of the language arts
curriculum and Black-Language specific instructional strategies for black children”
(Smitherman). This article reported that many students that speak Black English are put into
some form of a special education service or teachers have lower expectations for them because
they seem to learn slower. This infuriates me. I feel that it is idiotic to put a child into special
education because of a language barrier that is causing him to fall behind in class. As a future
special educator, I understand the difference between a learning disorder and a language barrier.
I also know that there is a higher percentage of African Americans that are receiving special
education services in the United States.
Now that I have read this article, I wonder if there are more African Americans in special
education because educators are mistaking a language barrier as a learning disability. The
schools should not be placing students who speak Black English in special education because
they are falling behind; they should be evaluating the real problem and if that problem is the
language barrier than they should be getting the help of a speech and language pathologist to
help bridge that language barrier. A language barrier is not a learning disability.
After reading this article, I’ve come to the conclusion that Black English needs to be
recognized by schools. I am not say that they necessarily have to educate their students that
speak Black English in that language, but they need to find a way to overcome the language
barrier. I think that if the schools can do that then the education of African American students
will improve immensely and create better schools. Black English needs to be recognized as a
language that has its own structure and schools need to start that recognition.
Work Cited
Smitherman, Gineva. "Black Language and the Education of Black Children: One Mo Once."
Black Scholar. (1997): 28-35.