Students mentioned learning about differences among dialects, but students did not mention learning about power and identity. When students were asked to describe their learning from the curricular activities in their one-on-one interviews at the end of the study, students of all races described learning about features specific to non-mainstream dialects or the differences in the way speakers use English (see Table 5.5). During the one-on-one interviews at the end of the study, all twenty-one participants were asked, “What have you learned over the course of these activities?” Four out of seven multiracial students’ responses expressed that they were aware of the differences in the dialects speakers use by the end of the study. For example, Kenneth (class two) said, “People speak different ways,” and Traci (class one) commented, “There’s different ways people talk.” Two out of nine African American students described learning about features specific to non-mainstream dialects. Amelia noted that AAE exists and, “There are like patterns and stuff to it.” Similarly, Jackson said he learned “The ways people speak. The car needs washed and stuff.” Four out of seven multiracial students’ interview responses suggest that they expressed noticing differences in the ways speakers use English, but they did not expand on what those differences included. Similarly, two African American students noted learning about dialect differences, but the responses did not include specific observations about dialect differences.
All four White students in the study expressed that they learned about the different ways speakers use dialects. Steven provided the following response during his one-on-one interview when I asked him what he learned: “I learned about the different types of non-mainstream
learning how different cultures use different non-mainstream dialects. Even though Steven did not specify a non-mainstream dialect used by many members of a particular race or culture, this was the first time during the study any of his comments (or any White student) alluded to race or culture. It is likely that the one-on-one atmosphere allowed Steven to mention culture in a way that was more discreet than the whole-class discussions and activities from the dialect curriculum.
Only two students expressed that they learned about code switching. Danielle (African American) said, “Depending on who you’re talking to you have to choose which language to choose.” Similarly, Harper (White) alluded to code switching when she responded, “People can talk in different ways. People can change the way they talk.” Danielle and Harper were both in class two and were the only students whose remarks suggested that code switching was a part of their learning from the curricular activities. It is possible Danielle and Harper’s sociolinguistic perceptions were shaped by Mrs. Dunston’s reminders to students to code switch. This finding is significant because Mrs. Dunston expressed that it was important for her students to know how and when to code switch, but only two students identified code switching as something they learned during the study.
No students reported learning about the power structures that undergird language ideologies or connections between dialects and identity. The curricular activities on the history and patterns of AAE and Pittsburgh dialect and the viewing of the segments from American Tongues seemed to lead to the most change in sociolinguistic perceptions during the study. These activities gave students an opportunity to consider and identify their own uses of non-mainstream dialects, learn about other dialects, and observe the ways speakers in different parts of the country describe dialects that are less familiar to them. Questions about power during the study
often went unanswered by students until Amelia and Kelsey shared their perceptions on day eight of the study after students viewed the HUD PSA about housing discrimination. Schultz (2010) suggests that students use silence as a way to gain access to different groups and perspectives, and as a result, the silence protects students from appearing as outsiders if their views are different from their classmates. In a case study example, Schultz (2010) describes a high school student named Caroline who expressed that in eighth grade, she shifted from an outspoken student to a quiet student in order to gain acceptance from her peers. Caroline silenced her views that might differ from her peers because Caroline perceived that her outspoken personality would subject her to being labeled as an outsider by her peers. In the current study of sixth graders, the silence observed from many students from different racial backgrounds on the topic power might be the result of students actively listening to determine their classmates’ perceptions and protect their own perceptions that might differ.
In summary, students’ perceptions of their learning did not include learning about power. This finding is significant because Godley and Minnici (2008) define critical language pedagogy as “instructional approaches that guide students to critical examinations of the ideologies surrounding language and dialects, the power relations such ideologies uphold, and ways to change these ideologies” (p. 320). It is important for students (especially students who speak non-mainstream dialects such as AAE) to learn about the inherent power behind MAE because non-mainstream dialects are often perceived as wrong, inappropriate, or indicative of speakers of lesser intelligence when compared to MAE (Baugh, 1999; Bereiter & Englemann, 1966; Labov, 1969; Smitherman, 2000). When students learn about power and begin to question ideologies about language that students have assumed as norms for how speakers should communicate, then students can begin to consider ways to change negative perceptions of non-mainstream dialects.
As previously discussed, four students (one out of nine African American students and three out of seven multiracial students) mentioned inquiries about power as topics that they would like to learn more about. This finding differs from Godley and Minnici’s (2008) study that found African American high school students were more critical and aware of the power structures connected to uses of dialects after participating in critical language pedagogy. Participants in Godley and Minnici’s study began to deconstruct the terminology “proper English” after viewing American Tongues. The current study of middle school students might not include many critical examinations of power because of students’ age or limited awareness of power structures around uses of dialects. It is also possible that the curriculum did not give students an opportunity to learn about power as a separate topic before students were asked questions about power in relation to dialects.
Table 5.5 Students’ Self-Reported Learning from One-On-One Interview at the End of the Study
Student Race Class Self-reported Learning Major
Themes Amelia African
American
2 That there was African American English and there are like patterns and stuff to it.
Features
Danielle African American
2 MAE and non-mainstream English are different. Depending on who you’re talking to you have to choose which language to use.
Differences; Code
Table 5.5 (continued)
Harper White 2 People can talk in different ways. People can change the way they talk.
Differences; Code
switching India Multiracial 1 I learned like how different
Pittsburghers talk…like how they talk really different. I thought they [speakers of Pittsburgh dialect and AAE] would talk the same kinda.
Differences
Jackson African American
2 Some of the ways people speak. The car needs washed and stuff.
Features
Joseph Multiracial 2 I learned that not everyone’s the same and some people get discriminated against because of how they speak and who they are and where they come from.
Differences
Kelsey Multiracial 2 I learned like how there’s a lot of different dialects.
Differences
Kimberly White 1 Like different people speak a different way.
Table 5.5 (continued)
Kenneth Multiracial 2 That people speak in different ways and people could speak in ways that you wouldn’t imagine them speaking of.
Differences
Myles African American
1 There are different dialects you could speak.
Differences
Steven White 2 I learned about the different types of non-mainstream dialects and how it’s used by different people and different cultures.
Differences
Traci Multiracial 1 There’s different ways people talk. Differences
5.6 SUMMARY
Students did not report questioning power in their follow-up interviews as a part of the change in their sociolinguistic perceptions, and this suggests that more curricular activities about power are needed to encourage students to question constructs of power and begin to consider how to work to change negative perceptions of non-mainstream dialects. However, several students identified power as a topic that they would like to learn more about in the future. This suggests that the viewing of the Do You Speak American? video as well as the questioning from Mrs. Dunston and
me on power that often went unanswered encouraged students to think about power in a way that students had not thought about it previously. In order to achieve the intended learning goals of learning about dialects, power, and identity, the curriculum might need to be revised to present the topics to middle school students in a way that gives students time to grapple with these topics individually before they are combined into curricular activities. The curriculum did not provide students with enough time to discuss the topics of identity and power sufficiently or provide definitions or examples of these concepts. The curriculum might have assumed that these were topics familiar to middle school students. Research on discussions about the intersections between dialects, power, and identity has typically been conducted in high school and college classroom settings that are racially homogeneous or predominantly represent only one race (Baker-Bell, 2013; Godley & Minnici, 2008; Reaser, 2006). Additionally, there are limited studies that have explored students learning about dialect differences in elementary school settings (Henderson, 2016; Sweetland, 2006). It is possible that middle students’ sociolinguistic perceptions and perceptions of their learning can be changed if the curriculum is revised to slowly introduce the topic of power to the students and provide activities that encourage students to consider examples of power that they are already aware of in society before discussing power in relation to dialects.