Dialects in the Classroom

Recognizing students’ existing knowledge is important, as it fosters confidence in the students (they already know things – things their teacher may not!), affirms students’ sense of self and their right to be who they are, and builds trust between students and teachers.  Discussing dialectal differences can be a fun and effective way to build a strong learning environment regardless of the diversity of the classroom population, and it can help prepare students to learn to read and to use standard language when needed.  When we confirm the value of the language the students already know, they are more likely to be receptive to adding new ways of speaking to their repertoire; in a linguistically diverse classroom, these discussions can also highlight the knowledge that all students have and foster appreciation and acceptance.  

But how do we go about implementing these suggestions?  One way to do this might be to start and post in the classroom a list of words the students know that teachers do not; often these are slang terms.  Teachers can adapt this activity in various ways.  A teacher new to New Orleans, for example, might want to ask the children for help learning the local way of speaking, and then provide their own and/or standard equivalents for the words or expressions the children provide on a separate, contrasting sheet.  A teacher in a classroom with students who speak other languages at home may choose to have the students teach them a new word or expression in their home language and then provide the English equivalent.

We encourage teachers to discuss overtly with students the different ways we have of saying the same thing, and the value that each way of speaking holds.  Particularly with older children, ask the students what the difference is between the way they speak on the playground vs the way they speak in the classroom, using a specific expression they provide – is there a difference in effect?  Is one more precise in some way?  Is one not easily translatable?  Each day (or week, or whatever time period you choose), select a new word or expression to highlight to keep their interest up. 

It’s important to stress to the children that in school they are not going to be taught to replace the way they speak with another.  The way they speak outside the classroom is not wrong or bad!  Rather, they are going to learn different ways of saying things.  There is value to all ways of speaking, and just like speaking a second language, being able to change the way you speak in different contexts gives you access to more than one community.