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Ebonics taught as 'home speech' in Georgia school
January 17, 1997Web posted at: 11:40 p.m. EST
From Correspondent Brian Cabell
DEKALB COUNTY, Georgia (CNN) -- While Ebonics rages as a hot topic in the spotlight of American media, so called Black English has played a quiet role in an Atlanta area school district for more than a decade.
About 600 students in the Dekalb County School District just east of Atlanta are taking a course known as "bi-dialectal communication."
Here, Ebonics is considered not a language, but a dialect. Specifically, it's called "home speech," and it's not considered appropriate for the classroom.
The course focuses on more than just the non-standard English of Ebonics. The students learn they must project, enunciate and gesture properly to communicate.
Part of the class involves critiquing a videotaped actor violating several rules of effective communication.
This is the 11th year of the federally funded bi-dialectal program. Administrators cite rising test scores in language arts and reading as evidence that it works.
Parents also seem to approve: "If I had something like this when I was growing up, I probably would have went further," said parent Jannita Hightower.
Added Gregory Maxwell: "If you want someone that's going to go places, you want to be able to talk right."
Teachers agree. Ebonics, while a legitimate form of speech at home, will likely hinder children at school and eventually their careers.
"We have a responsibility to tell them that, and I think to tell them anything beyond that may be setting them up for an unrealistic view of our society," said Kelli Harris-Wright, bi-dialectal program director.
Teachers say sometimes their students take pride in going home and correcting the grammar of their parents.
Related stories:
- Jackson, Oakland school board discuss Ebonics - December 30, 1996
- 'Black English' proposal draws fire - December 22, 1996
- Oakland schools adopt 'Black English' policy - December 19, 1996
Related sites:
Note: Pages will open in a new browser window- DeKalb County School System
- Oakland School Board Resolution
- Linguistics at the University of California - Berkeley
External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.
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