Validating and Supporting the Culture and Language of Speakers of African American Language

• In Event: 69.057 - Roundtable Session 32
  In Roundtable Session: 69.057-1 - Competing Narratives Around the Lives of Black and Latinx Students in U.S. Schools

Abstract

This qualitative case study explored teachers’ knowledge and perceptions of African American Language (AAL) and its speakers, as well as implementation of instructional practices for validating and supporting African American students whose first language is AAL. The researcher examined classrooms for discourses and practices that reflected an acknowledgement and respect for the role of language and culture in African American students’ opportunities to learn. Data analysis revealed that teachers in this study did not have a firm understanding of AAL and its cultural and linguistic features, classroom discourses did not allow opportunities for students to use language to construct knowledge, and teachers did not build on African American students’ home language as a tool for learning.

Author

• Rita Suh, California State University - Long Beach