Non-standard English is scrutinized by people who don’t understand the cultural origins of this derived version of English spoken by people of color. Slavery, colonization, and immigration are factors that contribute to this judgment of those who may be suffering academically because their understanding of Standard English is not sufficient enough according to their school. In America, a reward system in the form of grades has measured students’ success. This is problematic because a student can be sufficient in understanding verbal language, but have issues with written language. The test of their comprehension of a subject based on a standardized test can work against them because it’s not organically derived from their spoken language at home. This suppression of other non-standard ‘home’ languages contributes to the cultural erasure of minorities. We have seen this time and time again in history, and maybe it’s because this is a less obvious version of cultural oppression than slavery, but it’s still an issue that more people need to be made aware of. I was personally unaware of this issue considering I went to predominantly white schools growing up. This lack of diversity left me ignorant to such issues introduced to me through Jamila Lyiscott’s TED Talk, Why English Class is Silencing Students of Color.
Lyiscott refers to a time in America, circa the early 17th century, where slaves were forbidden to read or write. Illegal literacy practices of slaves would result in a whipping or the amputation of body parts, according to Cornell.edu. The sense of ‘fugitivity’ she mentions in her TED Talk is prevalent in black students who feel unsafe “participating in black literacy” because they are afraid. However, black literacy undoubtedly has origins from their mother-countries that some educators don’t understand. For example, copula absence is the absence of the verb ‘to be’ in a sentence. Linguists have found that this African- American English is rooted in West African Languages, according to Lyiscott. It’s correct to use for those who have these African roots, yet it’s not valued in the American education system. She says, “…if we think about what it means in our institutional spaces to continue participating in the erasure and the oppression of people from historically marginalized groups instead of incorporating, validating, and celebrating who they are in these institutional spaces, then we do a disservice to ourselves and to our world.” This cultural erasure is more obvious when reading texts like Zitkala-Sa’s American Indian Stories, which highlights a more apparent, physical cultural erasure. These standardized tests regulating the “right” way to read and write in English is similar to the involuntary cutting of Zitkala-Sa’s traditional, long, Native American hair. This removal of individuality based on race by an institution has existed for hundreds of years, and it’s safe to say it’s continuing with slight variation today through education.
However, not all educators in America believe in this sort of standardized testing. A resolution found in Students’ Rights to Their Own Language says, “ If teachers understand that the spoken language is always primary and the written language is a separate and secondary or derived system, they will be able to recognize that students inexperienced in the written system may still have great competence and facility in the spoken language” (SRTOL 19). If a student can’t pass a standard exam, educators and even just people, in general, should know that it doesn’t mean they aren’t smart and don’t understand the idea of the text. It may be that they’re not used to standard phrasing and structure, which is rewarded with passing grades. I don’t believe a student should be corrected if they speak non-standard English. They may very well be articulate in their own home language, which should not be discredited and looked down upon. Lyiscott recalls a time in her speech where a woman found her to be so articulate, insinuating that for a person of her color, Lyiscott spoke very well. Obviously, this is racist because you’re implying that black people don’t speak well in the first place. She uses this moment as a conduit for her in-depth research of language, race, and power. Her own home languages come from her Trinidadian roots as well as her Crown Heights, Brooklyn community. “Our perception of the difference between an acceptable and
unacceptable dialect depends on the power and prestige of the people who speak it.
We tend to respect and admire the dialect of people who are wealthy or powerful” (SRTOL 19).
English is used as a commodity in other countries. Japan, a country with the third-largest economy in the world, utilizes the English language for businesses that intend on expanding globally. According to Stuck In Between: English Language Environment for International Students and Skilled Foreign Workers in Japan, ” Language policies are closely related to corporate and national agendas for many countries in the face of increasingly fierce global competition.” Standard English has grown to be valued around the world, which acts as a hurdle for those struggling to see why a less-accepted version of the language is still correct. “The linguistic interface is considered essential to enable Japan’s global expansion and to stimulate a sluggish domestic economy that has been suffering from a low growth rate. The use of English has been strongly promoted by some well-known Japanese CEOs” (Murata 52). Rather than seeing how English is implemented in Japanese schools, I wanted to see what it would be used for and how Japan as a country views our language. It’s simply just a tool for economic gain. It’s no coincidence that we see English becoming a tool for economic success and that Lyiscott has made strong connections with language, race, and power.
Neglecting to educate ourselves on this issue of cultural erasure and modern institutionalized abuse would only help its continuation in the American education system. As a writing studies minor, I am constantly coming up with papers I feel are articulate enough to address the topic assigned and argue with cited evidence. It is through this evidence and research discussed to show that there is an issue that needs to be addressed. A restructuring of the American Education System would be a simple solution if it weren’t for all of the social, cultural, economic, and political issues that stand in the way of such a thing. As mentioned before, educating ourselves and our peers on this subject would help raise awareness and possibly lead more people to be more understanding of someone’s use of their ‘home’ language that varies from Standard English taught in American schools. We shouldn’t think less of someone for speaking a derived version of English at all, but especially when this dialect has cultural ties to their mother countries.
Works Cited:
American Indian Stories by Zitkala-Sa [aka Gertrude Simmons Bonnin] (1876-1938). Washington: Hayworth Publishing House, 1921.
Murata, Akiko. “Stuck in Between: Foreign Language Education in Japan.” Foreign Language Education in Japan : Exploring Qualitative Approaches, 2015, pp. 51–64., doi:10.1007/978-94-6300-325-4_4.
“The Students’ Right to Their Own Language” College Composition and Communication, vol. XXV, https://secure.ncte.org/library/NCTEFiles/Groups/CCCC/NewSRTOL.pdf.
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