DW3a

For this assignment I chose to work with the reading selection by Ramsey titled “Teaching the Teachers”. In this piece we are presented with the idea that no single dialect is superior over all the others. However because of their distinct differences some dialects give their users an advantage depending on the situation. For example the use of AAVE and other dialects that differ from Standard English were found to have a negative impact in the workplace and interview setting, and their use can even result in the loss of jobs. Because this concept has been realized by most education institutions, teachers now attempt to teach their students Standard English to the best of their abilities. Unfortunately there is no one uniform rule that explains how to teach Standard English to students. Often when the teachers try to correct their students writing and rhetoric they go about it all wrong. In schools the teacher’s focus was said to be too focused on grammar and not enough on comprehension. It is all fine and well if you can complete an in class worksheet, but the real test is presented when the students are asked to use their Standard English in the real world. When the students were required to compose papers the mix of the AAVE dialect they believed they were familiar with and the Standard English they had been taught in class combined to form very poorly written papers. This problem is said to be so prevalent because the students simply do not know what they need to do to integrate the two dialects to create a good paper. According to Ramsey the solution to this problem is for the teachers to teach the basics of writing a paper that can apply to any dialect rather than focusing on unique dialect techniques. Understanding the qualities of a paper such as organization and solid paragraph formation are necessary to write a good paper no matter what language or dialect you are comfortable with. Overall I don’t think this selection argues that the use of AAVE in composition is the best choice. Instead it tries to make the case that the use of Standard English by speakers of AAVE is not a selling out of their culture. In cases where the students have a desire to learn Standard English the problem often lies on the teachers end. Ramsey claims that if the teachers are not encouraging of the students then it is very difficult to expect results from the students.