Ebonics Is It A Language

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Ebonics Is It A Language ?

• By Erikka M. Baskerville

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Ebonics DefinedIntroduction

• The Center for Applied Linguistics defines
  Ebonics as a dialect of American English used
  by African Americans in certain settings or
  circumstances.
• Other Linguists define it as Black English or
  African American English.
• The term was created in 1973 by a group of black
  scholars who disliked the negative connotations
  of terms like Nonstandard Negro English.

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Ebonics Defined Continued

• Ebonics is an international construct, including
  the linguistic consequences of the African slave
  trade.
• Ebonics is the equivalent of black English and is
  considered to be a dialect of English.
• Terms used other than Ebonics Black English,
  African American Vernacular English.

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Where Did Ebonics Come From?Overview

• There are some linguists that believe that most
  of the vocabulary of Ebonics is from English.
• Much of its pronunciation and grammar could have
  come from the nonstandard dialects of English
  indentured servants and other workers with whom
  African interacted.
• Other linguists emphasize Ebonics from West
  African languages which often lack th sounds
  and final consonant clusters.
• Replacing or simplifying these occurs both in US
  Ebonics and in West African English varieties
  spoken in Nigeria and Ghana.

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Jazz Influences

• Cab Calloway originated and popularized an entire
  Swing Era culture.
• Words such as 'hepcat', 'jive', and 'jitterbug'
  were heard on his radio broadcasts and adopted by
  the nation during the 1930s and 40s. Scat
  singing also characterized Calloway's music,
  making use of nonsense lyrics in place of real
  words.
• Phrases such as "skeeten, scaten, hi de ho"
  became common place and opened up a new avenue
  for Swing music. Calloway himself is often
  referred to as the "Hi-De-Ho Man".http//video.g
  oogle.com/videoplay?docid5540735834911952197qca
  llowayprgoog-sl

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Phrases and Words

• Such words and phrases as
• Right OnBrotha
• You Jivin-the same as you lying.
• Shootin the dozen-these were momma jokes.
• Were all phrases and words that were used during
  the late 60s and early 70s by African Americans
  and heard on the popular 70s show Good Times.

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Culture of Ebonics

• Tommie Smith won the gold in the 200m final of
  the 1968 Olympic Games by setting a new world
  record. John Carlos, took the bronze.
• Both men decided to make a protest. While the
  Star-Spangled Banner played during the medal
  ceremony.
• Smith raised his right, black-gloved fist to
  represent Black Power, while Carlos's raised his
  left black gloved fist to represent black unity.
  
• Although popular words and phrases were used as
  Black English gestures were an influence as well.
  
• Click on Tommie Smith and Black Power

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Hip Hop Influences

• Hip hop culture became the musical vehicle by
  which Ebonics traveled.
• Rap acts like Public Enemy, N.W.A., Tupac
  Shakur, Nas, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious
  Five and even Puffy Combs were influencing speech
  patterns everywhere because of their pop cultural
  presence on MTV and in the media.
• Many African-Americans built on the language
  twists of rap music and Ebonics dialects to
  express themselves.
• As Puff Daddy would say, Its all about the
  Benjamins (money, referring to the portrait on
  American bills)

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Influences of Ebonics

• Words such as Crunk, Bling Bling and
  Bootylicious have been added to Webster
  Dictionary as new words influenced by Hip-hop
  artists.

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Grammatical Features
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My Research

• As I researched my topic on Ebonics, one name
  continued to show up in books, articles, and
  journal articles. The name that continued to pop
  up was Oakland California School District.
• In 1996, Oakland Californias school district
  wanted to legitimize Ebonics in the school
  curriculum. The term Ebonics was never really
  popular until the Oakland California School
  District wanted to include into the curriculum.

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The Oakland School Board District

• The Oakland, California school board on December
  18, 1996, wanted "Ebonics" officially recognized
  as a language or dialect.

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Comprehension??

• In the mid-90s, the style of speech of African
  American children at school in Oakland,
  California was so dramatically different from
  standard English, that teachers were not able to
  comprehend what they were saying.
• Since these children were performing poorly in
  school, they failed to acquire the methods of
  speaking required to succeed in the world outside
  their neighborhoods.
• The Oakland School Board accepted Ebonics to
  compare it to Standard American English and use
  it to inform the students of the correct way of
  speaking.
• The American media focused on the fact that
  Oakland was making Ebonics its official language,
  and misreported that the teaching of English
  would be replaced by Ebonics.
• The uproar and backlash from this media angle was
  immense. Many debated the racial implications of
  the Oakland school boards vote to declare Black
  English a separate language.

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Ebonics Recognized

• In 1996 The Oakland Unified School District Board
  of Education assessed a task force which studied
  problems in Oakland schools.
• The district wanted to find out why
  African-American students were scoring low on
  standardized tests and had low grades, in
  comparison to other racial or ethnic groups.
• Recommendations from the Boards panel were
  published in the Oakland Resolution in 1996.
• The district declared Ebonics African Language
  Systems as the native language of
  African-American children, genetically based and
  not a dialect of American English.
• The Oakland board trustees unanimously voted for
  what became Americas first education policy
  recognizing Ebonics as the primary language of
  many students, comparing their language needs
  with those of immigrant children.
• Teachers were then required to understand the
  characteristics of their students speech so that
  they could assist children in learning standard
  English by encouraging them to compare it with
  the Ebonics speech.

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Rethinking Schools.

• Carrie Secret, a fifth-grade teacher at Prescott
  Elementary School in the Oakland Unified School
  District.
• Prescott had been the only school in the system
  where a majority of teachers voluntarily agreed
  to adopt the Standard English Proficiency
  program.
• A statewide initiative which acknowledges the
  systematic, rule-governed nature of "Black
  English" while helping children to learn Standard
  English.
• Secret was interviewed by Barbara Miner, managing
  editor of Rethinking Schools. http//www.rethinkin
  gschools.org/archive/12_01/ebsecret.shtml

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EbonicsConclusion (Is It A Language?)

• The question remains as to whether or not if
  Ebonics language usage is justifiable and
  valuable outside of African-American circles.
• Ebonics According to Erikka Baskerville-
• - Ebonics has become apart of
  African American culture and it is embraced
  through the past events, hip hop culture, and the
  environment in which one lives. Ebonics is simply
  free style speech. It remains up to the teachers
  to inform themselves about the culture and
  language of their students in order to support
  learning and racial understanding. It is up to us
  to decide how we want to use it the classroom.

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References

• http//www2.kenyon.edu/Depts/IPHS/Projects/swing1
  /music/kings.htmcc
• http//fcis.oise.utoronto.ca/daniel_schugurensky/
  assignment1/1996ebonics.html
• http//www.rethinkingschools.org/archive/12_01/ebs
  ecret.shtml
• http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_American_Vern
  acular_English
• http//www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/CRcarlosJ.htm
  
• http//video.google.com/videoplay?docid5540735834
  911952197qcallowayprgoog-sl
• Edited by Perry,T and Delpit, L. The Real Ebonics
  Debate pp 19-20.
• Baugh, J. Beyond Ebonics Linguistic Pride and
  Racial Prejudice p. 65-66
• The Center for Applied Linguistics