www.laspdg.org My Language, My Identity: Language Used In Households Presented by Kyomi Gregory, M.A., CCC-SLP People First Language “People First Language puts the person before the disability and describes what a person has, not who a person is.” Kathie Snow. (n.d.) A few words about People First Language. Disability is Natural. Retrieved August 1, 2012 from http://www.disabilityisnatural.com/images/PDF/pfl-sh09.pdf Please Note If you would like to download today’s power point, you may do so at any time during the webinar using the FILES Pod in the bottom right hand corner of your screen Simply click on the file name and then click “SAVE TO MY COMPUTER” Select the destination on your computer where you would like the file saved Learning Outcomes To identify aspects of language use within the household. To distinguish parenting styles that impact language use within the classroom. To identify strategies to bridge the gap between a home language and a school language. What is a dialect? Dialect is defined as a "neutral" term to refer to any variety of a language that is shared by a group of speakers. Experts assert that all speakers are in fact speakers of a dialect, none of which is superior to another. Wolfram, 1991; Stubbs, 2002 Nonmainstream Dialects Nonmainstream American English (NMAE) dialects are rule governed language systems inclusive of all aspects of language (i.e. phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics and pragmatics). Examples of NMAE dialects African-American English (AAE) Southern White English (SWE) Latino English Cajun French Characteristics of NMAE dialect Differences in pronunciation, syntax, and vocabulary are most easily identified. It also includes differences in other discourse structures such as: Question responses and requests (Heath, 1982) Turn taking (Au & Mason, 1983) Intonation, formulaic expressions, and tempo (Damico & Damico, 1993) Dialect Differences in Narratives Cazden’s (2001) study discussed the tendency by Caucasian children to sequence their narratives topically versus African-American children that provided “episodic stories” Narratives Caucasian students: sequence narratives topically organizes a narrative according to subtopics and topics this is the most commonly used format that is considered acceptable for narratives. Cazden, 2001 Narratives African-American Students: Produced “episodic stories.” This usually involves a main character or theme. Cazden, 2001 “Home Language” Children arrive to school with the language of their families & communities. Many students speak a nonmainstream dialect. Cheatham, Armstrong,& Santos, 2009 Respect for Inclusion of the “Home Language” • This respect for the “home language” adheres to recommendations from many academic professional organizations, including the: • National Council on Teachers of English (NCTE; 2004, 2005) • National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC; 1995) • Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL; 1997). “Code Switching” Children who speak NMAE dialects often find themselves in many social contexts, in which they can utilize their ability to use both Standard American English (SAE) and their dialect. This is known as “code switching.” Teachers may witness children “code switching” in more or less formal contexts. Race & Identity Dialects are often strongly linked to race, ethnicity, and class. This plays an important role in children’s identities. This can be viewed as a strength & resource like any part of their home environment. Cheatham, Armstrong,& Santos, 2009 Tapping Into the “Home Language” Current research illustrates the benefits of tapping into children’s nonstandard dialects to enhance learning. Children’s dialects are resources from which to expand their language repertoire. Building on what children know is an excellent approach for all children, including those that speak NMAE dialects. Chealtham, Armstrong,& Santos, 2009; Dyson & Smitherman, 2009; Murray, 1997 Tapping Into the “Home Language” Educators need to: bridge the gap between the home language and the school language respect/ preserve the home language facilitate the development of a school language. Families’ Language Use Across Classes Measures & Scores PRO Parent PRO Child WC Parent WC Child FSA Parent FSA Child Average utterances per hour 487 310 301 223 176 168 Average of different words per hour 382 297 251 216 167 149 Class Key: PRO= Professional WC = Working Class FSA= Families Receiving State Aid Hart & Risley, 2003 Vocabulary Gap The children’s language exposure during a 100hour week differed with the following exposure to vocabulary: Professional families: 215,000 words Working-class families: 125,000 words Families receiving state aid: 62,000 words Hart & Risley, 2003 Encouragement/ Discouragement Social Class Affirmatives Prohibitions Professional 32 5 Working Class 12 7 Families receiving state aid 5 11 Hart & Risley, 2003 Importance of Early Year Experiences By age 3, children in various social classes have differences in vocabulary exposure. From ages one to three, exists a period of great brain plasticity, during which early intervention can have long term effects. Hart & Risley, 2003 Parenting Styles Laureau (2005) identified that parents differed by social class in the way that they define their roles in a child’s life. Middle Class – “concerted cultivation” Poor/ Working Class – “accomplishment of natural growth” “Concerted Cultivation” This encourages the child’s sense of entitlement. This class group utilized: Reasoning Child contestation of adult statements Extended negotiations between parent & child This use of language fostered language development. Laureau, 2005 “Accomplishment of Natural Growth” This encourages an emerging sense of constraint. This class group utilized: Directives Rarity of child questions General acceptance of child directives Laureau, 2005 Educational Implications An obstacle to children speaking NMAE dialect is an educators’ negative perception (Cheatham, Armstrong, & Santos, 2009). Negative perceptions significantly impact a child’s motivation to learn, self-efficacy, selfconfidence and their ability to feel confident speaking SAE (Blake & Cutler, 2003). Educational Implications Teacher’s also must be aware of the parenting styles that influence language use. Students come into the classroom with different exposures to vocabulary based on social class. Final Statement Don’t denigrate the home language! References Au, K.H., & Mason, J.M. (1983). Cultural congruence in classroom participation structures: Achieving a balance of rights. Discourse Processes, 6, 145-167. Blake, R. & Cutler, C. (2003). AAE and variation in teacher’s attitudes: A question of school philosophy? Linguistics and Education, 14, 163-194. Cazden, C.B. (2001). Classroom discourse: The language of teaching and learning. Portsmouth, NH: Heineman. Cheatham, G.A., Armstrong, J., & Santos, R.M. (2009). “Y’all Listenin?”: Accessing Children’s Dialects in Preschool YEC. Young Exceptional Children, 12(2), 214. References Damico, J.S., & Damico, S.K. (1993). Language and social skills from a diversity perspective: Considerations for the speech-language pathologist. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 24, 236-243. Dyson, A.H., & Smitherman, G. (2009). The right (write) start: African American language and the discourseof sounding right. Teacher’s College Record, 111, 973-998. Hart, B., & Risley, T.R. (2003). The Early Catastrophe: The 30 Million Word Gap By Age 3. American Educator, 27(1), 4-9 Heath, S.B. (1982). Questioning at home and at school: A comparative study. In G. Spindler (Ed.), Doing the ethnography of schooling (pp. 105-131). New York: Holt, Rinehrt and Winston. References Laureau, A. (2005). Invisible inequaltiy: Social class and child rearing in Black and White Families (pp. 71-93). In Public & Private Families: A Reader, (4th Edition), Edited by Andrew J. Cherlin, New York: The McGraw-Hill Company. Murray, D. (1997). TESOL speaks on Ebonics. TESOL Matters, 7(3), 1-22. National Association for the Education of Young Children. (1995). Responding to linguistic and cultural diversity: Recommendations for effective early childhood education. Retrieved March 6, 2013, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/PSDIV98.PDF National Council of Teachers of English. (2004). NCTE beliefs about the teaching of writing. Retrieved March 6, 2013, from http://www.ncte.org/positions/statements/writingbeliefs 2013, from http:// www.ncte.org/cee/positions/diverselearnersinee References National Council of Teachers of English. (2005). Supporting linguistically and culturally diverse learners in English education. Retrieved March 6, Stubbs, M. (2002). Some basic linguistic concepts. In L. Delpit & J.K. Dowdy (Eds.), The skin that we speak: Thoughts on language and culture in the classroom (pp.63-86). New York: New Press. Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (1997). Position statement of the TESOL Board on African American Vernacular English. Retrieved March 2013 fromhttp://www.tesol.org/advance-the-field/position-statements/positionstatement-of-the-tesol-board-on-african-american-vernacular-englishmarch-19 Vigil, D.C., & Hwa-Froelich, D.A. (2004). Interaction Styles in Minority Caregivers: Implications for Intervention. Communication Disorders Quarterly, 25(3), 119-126. 6, References Wolfram, W. (1991). Dialects and American English. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. Questions? After this webinar, you may email any content-related questions to Kyomi Gregory email@example.com You may email any grant-related questions to Melanie Lemoine firstname.lastname@example.org www.laspdg.org The contents of this PowerPoint presentation were developed under a grant from the US Department of Education, #H323A110003. However those contents do not necessarily represent the policy of the US Department of Education, and you should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government.