Ebonics In African American Schools

Words: 306

Pages: 2

Open Document

The term ebonics is a combination of the words “ebony” and “phonics” used to describe the non-standard English or dialect spoken by members of the African American community. “The term was created in 1973 by a group of black scholars who disliked the negative connotation of terms like “Nonstandard Negro English” that had been coined in the 1960’s when the first modern large-scale linguistics studies of African American speech-communities began.” (Green, 2002) Ebonics is still commonly used among people however, although rich in culture, it has been found to negatively affect students in school as they move up in higher education. Whether or not ebonics is an official language has been debated vigorously but even so, the failure to declare it as such is reflected in the various students who are constantly held back in today’s schools. …show more content…
Often times, slaves who did speak the same language were separated and placed into different groups because if they were able to communicate with each other there was a chance they would rebel against their masters (African Americans). As depicted in many movies and textbooks, African Americans were not allowed to learn how to read or write. In fact, they were punished severely if found breaking the rules. However, slave owners did need to communicate with their workers, which is how a pidgin language came about. A pidgin language is a “simplified mixture of two or more languages that speakers of different languages could use to communicate with each other” (African Americans.) According to Mary Berger, the word “ask” in English easily became “ax” in pidgin. As African Americans settled in America, the existing black Americans quickly adapted to the terms frequently used and thereafter, Ebonics

African American Vernacular English and Ebonics Essay

At its most literal level, Ebonics simply means 'black speech' (a blend of the words ebony 'black' and phonics 'sounds'). The term was created in 1973 by a group of black scholars who disliked the negative connotations of terms like 'Nonstandard Negro English' that had been coined in the 1960s when the first modern large-scale linguistic studies of African American speech-communities began. However, the term Ebonics never caught on among linguists, much less among the general public. That all changed…

Words 1219 - Pages 5

TH 1 Ling Essay

they should not allow their students to use Ebonics (also known as African American Vernacular English and Black English) in the classroom, that the students need to use real English.” Questions 1. Why is Ebonics not considered “real English”? 2. What are the linguistic origins of Ebonics? 3. What makes a language or dialect suitable to be taught in American schools? Preliminary Investigation According to the Linguistic Society of America, the word “Ebonics” was coined by “a group of black scholars…

Words 1017 - Pages 5

American English Vs Ebonics Research Paper

Standard American English vs Ebonics Going to your everyday typical places such as restaurants, malls, grocery shopping, and coffee shops you see many different cultures. Everyone dresses, eat, and even talks differently. When you approach different crowds you see younger people talk differently amongst themselves or when they speak to others they may sometimes speak full SAE (Standard American English). However, the big topic of controversy of today is how SAE vs ebonics is used today in the modern…

Words 905 - Pages 4

John Rickford Ebonics

surrounding Ebonics, sociolinguist John Rickford describes the African American vernacular language as, “not just slang, but an English dialect, sharing a lot with other English varieties, but with some pretty distinctive features of its own” (“Suite for Ebony and Phonics” 2). (Bridge) Rickford’s definition of Ebonics is distinguishing and stabilizing, and it allows for the Oakland School Board to propose a resolution establishing the language as the mother tongue of their African American students…

Words 1046 - Pages 5

Essay on Sign Language and Black Asl

this paper I will be examining some aspects of Cultural, Regional, and Sociolinguistic Variation of American Sign Language (ASL) in the United States. ASL is a standard language, in that it is a written language which is codification, it is the recognized and preferred method of communication for the majority of d/Deaf individuals in the U.S. It is not a known fact among many people that d/Deaf Americans are as culturally and ethnically different as the general population in the United States. This…

Words 2086 - Pages 9

The Impact Of Cultural Biases On African American Students

BIBLIOGRAPHY American Psychological Association. (2003). Guidelines on multicultural education, training, research, practice, and organizational change for psychologists. American Psychologist, 58(5), 377–401. Baker, P. B. (2005). The impact of cultural biases on African American students' education: A review of research literature regarding race-based schooling. Education and Urban Society, 37(3), 243–256. Boykin, A. W., Tyler, K. M., & Miller, O. A. (2005). In search of cultural themes and their…

Words 871 - Pages 4

african definition essay

Samuel Otuwa Sheffield Africana Studies 2/1/15 Definition Essay Racial issues among blacks have long been a blatant circumstance of the American experience. Such circumstances range of the horrible realities of African enslavement in the 1700s to the restrictions on human rights such as unfair practices such as literacy tests before being permitted to housing and voting in the 1950s. Fast forward to modern day, and the progress that blacks have initiated in America is evident through legislation…

Words 1606 - Pages 7

Chapter Summary: Addressing Vernacular Language

in this chapter. Harvey (2008) begins by evaluating the differences between the vernacular language of African American students - Ebonics - and standard English. A correlation is presented between social class and the prevalence of irregular sounds in language use. From this, the conclusion is drawn that students’ extensive use of vernacular over standard English lowers their achievement in school and further in life. However, the author notes that teaching students first in the vernacular before…

Words 545 - Pages 3

Rebellion: One Of The Key Elements Of African Slavery In Africa

elements of the Africana historical experience that allowed Africans to regain their identity and autonomy from their oppressors. They battle to define themselves when society already labeled them. The recent event of slavery among Africans did not only signify the dehumanization that they were forced to endure, but also how mentally and physically clever they were to revolt against the European culture. Through tolerance and assimilation Africans did not manage to recreate their original home, but was…

Words 1325 - Pages 6

Chap: Writing System and Language Essay

Ch. 16 Writing & Ch. 18 Language and Regional Variation Yule, G. (2010). The Study of Language (4th ed.). New York: Cambridge. Written Language vs. Spoken Language  Writing is defined as the symbolic representation of language through the use of graphic designs    Not simply “acquired” Has to be learned through sustained effort Recent phenomenon   Look at cave drawings nearly 20,000 years ago Clay tokens from 10,000 years ago Cuneiform Script   One of the earliest known forms of…

Words 1052 - Pages 5