There is tremendous variation in the use of American English by major geographic regions, as well as within these regions or cities, and by cultural background. The variety of English spoken by many African American people in the United States is called African American English (AAE). AAE affects early literacy skills in ways that may require…

Negative societal beliefs and language ideologies about Black Language speakers continue to shape how Black Language is perceived from deficit perspectives in schools. However, educators must challenge these negative ideologies by amplifying the rich linguistic features that Black Language speakers already have by positioning these language…

Despite a wealth of scholarship documenting its linguistic complexity, students in the United States are rarely encouraged to speak or write in African American Language (AAL) in their primary classrooms. The authors documented how one teacher and his highly diverse second-grade class examined, explored, and experimented with AAL in an…

Classrooms act as linguistic sieves when they continue to accept only dominant forms of English as the "correct" and "appropriate" language choice for all students. Students who speak other languages, such as African American Language or Spanish, are often encouraged to use those languages on the playground or at home but not…

An overview of Black dialects, with suggestions for teaching students who speak in Black dialects. (RL)

A review of recent research suggests that evidence is lacking to support the conclusion that black dialect interference is a major contributor to black children's reading problems. (MKM)

Points out that the linguistic rules of one's dialect determine what one hears and that items on tests of auditory discrimination may prove difficult for adults and nearly impossible for children. (JM)

Reports a study of the ability of Black children to hear final consonant blends even though they may not or cannot pronounce them. (TO)

Reviews significant research into child Black English, describes some of the controversies raised by that research, and offers some implications for teaching suggested by the research. (FL)

Demonstrates briefly the naturalness of dialect variation in American English, examines the implications for reading instruction of recognizing the naturalness of dialects, and provides a list of references for the professional development of teachers of children who speak dialects other than standard English. (ET)