THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, January 11, 1997 TAG: 9701110015
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A10 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: 77 lines
Perhaps I misunderstood Janet Bing's column (``Ebonics is worth teaching,'' Another View, Jan. 4), because I found it to be totally absurd.
I agree that people sometimes vary their language to suit particular situations, but this is not a justifiable reason for educators to teach nonstandard English to students. Professor Bing went on to state that language is like clothing. Would it make sense to pretend that there is only one good way to dress?
Here's a different analogy. What if I were a driver's-ed instructor. Now we all know that most people vary their driving to suit particular situations, i.e., driving within the speed limit if a state trooper is visible, otherwise speeding. Teen-age males tend to drive faster and more recklessly. The elderly sometimes drive too slow.
As a driving instructor, I would take the above into consideration; however, my responsibility is to teach the proper way to handle a vehicle and to abide by the rules and regulations in the state manual. To do otherwise would render me unfit.
I have no qualms with anyone who speaks proper standard English studying Ebonics, ghetto-onics, honky-tonics or any other onics. But I seriously question the motives of any adult educator who would intentionally teach nonstandard English to young minds.
Many educators need to rise above their preconceived notions about minority students, and channel their time and energy toward new strategies that will enable them to teach standard English. It is not an impossible task. The entire Ebonics issue seems to be just another rung on the ladder of minority hindrance.
VANESSA L. STORY
Norfolk, Jan. 6, 1997
As a black American (note: not African American), on the subject of Ebonics, or black slang, I feel that the following is noteworthy: I feel that funding for education could be better used by teaching more science, math and things to teach black children and others to compete in the world job market. Teaching Ebonics or bad English has nothing to offer to help anyone compete for jobs.
The funding for subjects like industrial arts would do more for black children than slang will ever do.
Moreover, every culture has its own slang, i.e., the Italians, the Polish, the Jewish all have a few words of slang that they use daily. But you do not see them trying to make a language out of it - at taxpayers' expense.
I notice that real African Americans whom I meet here in America do not speak black slang or Ebonics; they speak almost perfect English and do it better than the average American of any race.
In view of how black America is trailing everyone in economics, jobs and industrial growth, black leaders should be encouraging subjects that will help black America to compete. And Ebonics, or anything you call it, will not help prepare black children for tomorrow's job market.
JOE C. TAYLOR
U.S. Marine Corps (ret.)
Norfolk, Jan. 1, 1997
So the debate on Ebonics continues. Do we need to ``teach'' Ebonics to American children of African heritage in order to ``reach'' them? ODU Professor Janet Bing argues that by labeling a dialect ``bad,'' we label the speaker's values ``bad'' as well.
Huh? Did I miss something here?
And incidentally, to which urban-black values was Ms. Bing referring? Love and devotion to family? Loyalty to friends? The desire for your children to be better off than you were? What are these urban-black values that white middle-class Americans don't share? Was it materialism? Fronting an image through expensive sneakers, jeans and jackets? Oops, presenting that certain image is a white middle-class value too. It's like um, you know, really, like I can't totally express myself unless I like talk white, you know?
How far are we, as white teachers of urban minority students, supposed to go in reinforcing the acceptability of street language? I hope sanity prevails in our local school systems before we too become a national laughingstock as are our Oakland colleagues.
LISA MORGAN
Virginia Beach, Jan 4, 1997