Teaching African American English Forms to Teachers

[AbuAvital]

We could debate all day the subjective issue of whether AAE is a real form or not, but notice how those who took the time to learn standard English are generally better educated and hold higher paying jobs.

[mcblah]

that girl is totally hispanic.

[spinemelter2000]

The music is repetitious and very annoying, and so are the frames that keep switching so you have to pause and rewind. Yet I was compelled to watch the whole thing.

[ambelle]

great video, thanks for uploading!

i think there's a political side to this as well. for more than half a century the goal of black america has been integration, and the caveat is that they have to "drop" things like AAE to do so.

people graduating from college are now changing their "ethnic-sounding" names and leaving membership in clubs with African American interests off their resumes.

so teaching AAE now, doesn't really wash with me. black folk have to get a grip first.

[Ryooken]

@ambelle The problem is that out of the 53 dialects of English AAE is the only one deemed illegitemate. I too don't like our dialect being taught.

[lordblazer]

@ambelle

you're confusing integration with cultural assimilation. Seeing that the USis a multicultural nation-state. I don't think African Americans need to drop things that are a part of their culture. Doing so only accomodates ignorance. I'm not for that. Though I understand the value of learning standard american english. I also know the cultural and linguistic value of the AAVE dialect. Why leave ethnic sounding clubs off your resume if you were a student leader in them?

[lordblazer]

@ambelle

You are in dire need of living a few months outside of the US. Maybe live in several other countrie then return. It opens your mind. What grip are you talking about btw? If high numbers are failing school usually the problem lies within the schools. Can't be that black people are too belligerent to learn? Look into PRATEC an ngo group in the Andes regions in S. America. Groups faced similar problems.education is important, but entire cultures shouldn't be erased for its sake.

[nomandolin]

Dat vid be koo.

[ravenscrags]

Linguists do not use words like "improper". What is CONSIDERED improper now might have been standard 10 years ago. I am from the north of England and my dialect/accent or variety is different from Standard English. Everyone switches.

[bigratlover]

AAE is not "improper" English. It's simply an alternate dialect. Its grammar is different but it is regular, complex, and makes sense. Complex ideas can be expressed in it, and using it has nothing to do with being uneducated. It's sad that in America we treat it as inferior or incorrect. Doing so is a form of cultural prejudice.

[THEGLASSOFMILK2]

I think that wasting time teaching kids that improper English is right is just another step to dumb-ing down Americans. Yay (:

[lakeshawoods]

What do I think ...I think the expectation is set higher for African Americans because Africans were one of the first immigrants & its assumed that we should be using Standard American English all the time instead some often use AAVE (African American Vernacular English). I'm proud to say that in today's society many African Americans are very well versed and can switch up between dialects at any given moment. Children are just more comfortable speaking the one that is heard most in their homes.