Exercise 13.2.11
Most teachers agree that part of teachers' goals should be to encourage students in learning Standard English, both spoken and written. But an issue that we may disagree about, and that is raised by Bohn's study, is whether teachers should do so by using non-standard dialect in class. You could think about it this way: by “speaking Ebonics”, is a teacher modeling inappropriate English or is he/she providing students with a bridge from Ebonics to standard English? What do you think about this?
Exercise 13.2.12
There is also a related question that is more practical. Is using non-standard dialect really practical for every teacher? Presumably using it is easier for those with prior experience speaking the dialect, than for those without experience. But could other teachers learn it well enough to be effective with students? If not, then how else, if at all, could such teachers communicate with students effectively?
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