To Code Switch or Not To Code Switch
In Vershawn Ashanti Young's Nah We Straight, he states that,“ the fact that he had to code switch is the problem; the fact that AAE is still subject to racism is the issue to correct, not the people who speak it" (2009, p. 65). I agree that African-American English should be valued in the same way that Standard American English is. However, I think it's naive to believe that we live in a world where we can expect our students to do as well if they're not also familiar with SAE. Every day we're inundated with stories of people mistreating black people based solely on their appearance and speech. This is unfortunately the world we live in. In an ideal world, code meshing would be welcomed by all however, that is not our reality. On the other hand, integrating code switching in schools is an achievable goal. Why devalue code switching when its results have proven to be effective in the classroom setting?
Since I am no expert on code switching, I've included the below Ted Talk on the pros and cons of code switching. Chandra Arthur suggests that code switching can make the difference between life or death. Given the excess of black males who have been unjustly killed because they look or speak a certain way, she has a point.
Do you think code switching can make this much of an impact?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bo3hRq2RnNI
We claim to welcome diversity but only if it means it doesn't threaten the norms we have in place. Truly being diverse would mean appreciating all cultures and speech patterns. In a school setting, this could start with code switching. Ideally one group of people would not have to adjust their way of speaking to accommodate the dominate culture. One of the ways we can change this is by encouraging code switching in our classrooms today so that more students of color can gain access to companies and careers and make a difference. Hopefully, eventually, we'll be at a point where the higher tiers of companies (and their hr departments) reflect the world we live in. Maybe then we can consider code merging or better yet, welcome all languages and dialects without hesitation.
I'll end with two tv references since, 🤷🏻♀️, that's just me.For anyone who hasn't seen this Key and Peele skit, they poke fun at code switching and when its used.
http://www.cc.com/video-clips/qvrhhj/key-and-peele-phone-call
And, this gif from HBO's Insecure. In this episode, the main character, Issa's co-worker asks her what "on fleek" means. She politely responds that she doesn't know that that means, even though she does. She's tired of her white co-workers singling her out as the only black person in the office and asking her questions about language they assume she'll understand because of her race. If you have access to it, episode 3 of the first season deals extensively with code switching and the consequences of one black woman not switching to SAE in the workplace.
- Do you think that code switching is a good or bad thing?
- Is truly implementing it in a school setting possible?
- Do you think we need one universal language like SAE for places like work or school? If so, who should decide what this is?
- How can we implement code switching in the classroom without devaluing AAE?
- In the Wheeler article do you think they placed too much emphasis on SAE being the "formal" or correct language? Or is this necessary for success on tests and future achievement?
Young, V.A. (2009). "Nah We Straight": An Argument Against Code Switching.. jac, Vol. 29, #1-3 (pp. 49-76).
Wheeler, R.S., Swords, R. (2004). Codeswitching: Tools of Language and Culture Transform the Dialectally Diverse Classroom, Language Arts, Vol. 81, #6 (pp. 470-480).
Great post, Addy. I think you raise a lot of really good questions and unfortunately I don’t have good answers to any of them. I read the Wheeler and Swords (2004) article first and was really impressed by the successes they wrote about and thought explicitly teaching code switching in the classroom was a great idea. Wheeler and Swords wrote about ideas that matched my prior knowledge and what I’d learned about code switching in other classes. Then, when I read Young’s (2009) article, it completely flipped those ideas on their head. After reading that article, I am no longer sure if code switching is good or bad, harmful or helpful. Even after listening to the Ted Talk, I am unsure. She raised some good points for code switching (it may have saved her life, it probably helped her get a job) and some good points against it (she is forced to ‘split’ herself between her real self and her ‘white impersonation’ self).
ReplyDeleteIn the world we live in today, I think code switching is necessary. The people hiring and firing people do not tolerate what they consider ‘ungrammatical, wrong’ speech. Because of that reality, I think we must teach it in the classroom. However, Standard English should not be the only thing we allow students to speak in the classroom. If, as Chandra Arthur said, code switching forces students to hide a part of themselves to fit in, we will never truly know our students if we force them to speak only Standard English. There has to be a place for other dialects and ways of speaking.
I had a similar experience reading the articles. I’d only ever heard the positive side of code switching, but hadn’t considered the negative implications. I agree that code switching is unfortunately necessary given our current climate. I can’t help but wonder if part of the issue with code switching in the classroom is the way that teachers present it. If SAE is still upheld as the ideal standard, then we do a disservice to our students. If a student raises her hand to answer a question and isn’t perfectly grammatically correct does it really matter? On the other hand, if this same student doesn’t learn when it’s necessary to switch to SAE, like on standardized tests, then we’re not helping her.
DeleteAddy, very insightful post! I have a lot of the same questions you do after reading both articles and am unsure I will ever reach a point where I can confidently answer all of them. Before reading Young’s article which follows the idea that code switching “seeks to transform double consciousness, the very product of racism, into a linguistic solution to racial discrimination” (56) I viewed code switching as a positive as it allowed students to use both languages and gain an understanding of appropriate times to speak certain ways. I previously and naively related this to the idea that I spoke one way with my friends and another way in a professional setting. After reading Nah, We Straight, I now understand how detrimental it is to our students’ identities. I agree with you that expecting our entire society to change and accept code meshing in a professional setting is very naive but we can work to make changes and act as advocates for our students and their dialectical background. To give my input on some of your lingering questions, I believe Wheeler placed a little too much emphasis on SAE being the “correct” language because it implies that AAE is wrong and shouldn’t be valued. However, I do think that SAE is necessary for success on tests and future achievement in today’s current society. I hope that over time with greater diversity education to teachers and code meshing implementation that this won’t be an issue. I believe that acknowledging all forms of dialect and encouraging students to speak what’s comfortable to them is a critical step towards code meshing that we can do in our classrooms today.
ReplyDeleteI viewed code switching similarly as a way for students to switch between a professional and personal setting. However, "Nah We Straight" made me realize the implications of thinking this way. As someone who's never had to code switch it never occurred to me how harmful this could be. I remember in middle school when one of my friends who was African American and had just transferred to our very white private school commented on how we spoke. I didn't understand what she meant because I'd only ever been surrounded by people speaking one way and it never occurred to me that this wasn't the way everyone spoke. As a teacher, this is something that I'll strive to keep in mind on a daily basis. I like your idea of acting as advocates by acknowledging the value of all languages/dialects. It's so important to give our students a space where they can feel comfortable enough to learn the way that best suits them.
DeleteGreat post Addy! You bring up a lot of great questions that I also had myself. As a linguistics major, I knew what code switching was and how and why it was used. I'm guessing that everyone in our class agrees that every person's language and dialect they feel to be the most important to them, should be considered equal. I think we can also agree that in today's world, this is not the case, and that code switching would be beneficial in our current world. I do think that implementing code switching in a school setting is possible, but like Young says in his article "...code switching is not about accommodating two language varieties in one speech act. It's not about the practice of language blending. Rather it characterizes the teaching of language conversion." (pg. 50). Code switching still tries to make language conform to the dominant language, which is counterproductive in getting society to see AAE as an equal language rather than one that is accepted but still needs to be coupled with SAE.
ReplyDeleteI really like your question do we need a "standard" language for work or school and if so who should determine what it is? This is a really loaded question because if you believe that all dialects and languages are equal, (which I think they are) do you cater every test and homework assignment to each individual student? If you have a culturally and linguistically diverse classroom how do you distribute a completely equal test or assignment? If the test is a reading comprehension test and your students speak different dialects, whose dialect should be represented in the questions when it puts other students at a disadvantage who do not speak that dialect? I truly believe all dialects have equal value and should be represented and accepted in schools, but how can we be equal to all when at one point or another someone's dialect will be secondary to another?
I like the quote you've chosen about language conversion. This is a good a way to think about what not to do when incorporating and encouraging code switching in the classroom. Essentially, it shouldn't be about getting the student to translate their language to accommodate you. If we are utilizing code switching in the classroom it should only be in instances when it's necessary to facilitate students' success on area like testing. Otherwise, why not simply allow students to speak whatever way they feel most comfortable.
DeleteIt is a loaded question! I know many people who would answer yes to this question without really thinking about it. I think this is because for many people it's not something that they've had to think about since the tests have always been in their language of choice. When it comes to standardized tests, many of the nit-picky grammatical sections aren't necessarily useful in the long run and are intended to trick you rather than test your knowledge. Maybe as a start we should consider getting rid of questions like that.
Great post, Addy! I loved the TED talk and the extra tv examples you provided. After watching the TED talk, I thought she had many good points. She said that code switching isn't just about 'fitting in' but about being culturally compatible. She uses the term culturally compatible throughout the talk and explains that a certain type of diversity accepted in the states. She says that "minorities are acceptable provided they behave in a specific way" - in the way that is compatible with the culture of the dominate culture. I think that as educators, we should remember this going into classrooms. We always talk about how we want to make sure our students feel comfortable and to create a safe environment in schools, but how do we do that if we are not allowing them to speak, act and dress in a way that is authentic to them? The TED talk also brings up the struggles that people from different cultures, who opt for authenticity in America face major backlash. They are critiqued for their fashion, their hair style choices and overall identity of their culture. She goes right into saying how Americas critique other cultures, but appropriate them every day. I think it is so important to have these conversations with students and hopefully be able to create that safe environment for them to be their authentic self, and not receive any hate/negative attention because of it.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you liked the TED talk! I completely agree that it's easy to be "accepting" of minorities as long as they act or speak in a way that conforms with the dominant culture. I also agree that it's important to create safe environments. After subbing the last few weeks, I've learned that this is easier said than done. I had one boy in my class who said that another boy was calling him Cesar. I was confused at first because that was his name. He then explained that the way the other student was saying his name was deliberately offensive. I hadn't picked up on it, until he told me. This experience made me realize how important it is for the teacher to establish ground rules for how classmates treat each other. If a student is from a different culture or speaks in a different language or dialect for example, it's not ok for his classmates to make fun of him for this.
DeleteI agree, it’s the unfortunately reality that in the current national environment, the cultural differences and differences in language will factor in to who gets and who doesn’t get certain opportunities. It’s an ugly truth, but one we must realize, especially as future educators. As much as we would like to think or hope for a more accepting and inclusive system (nation or world for that matter), we must recognize the inequities, the discrimination, particularly as it pertains to language, exist and (hopefully not but…) will all but certainly continue to exist as we move forward.
ReplyDeleteSo, should we have to teach students code switching? No. In a fair and just world, all language patterns, dialects, etc. would and should be recognized, accepted, and valued. However, must we teach code switching? Yes, I believe so. I believe it is a disservice to our students to ignore it. “Rickford asserts that “the evidence that schools are failing massive numbers of African students with existing methods is so overwhelming that it would be counterproductive and offensive to continue using them uncritically”’ (Wheeler & Swords, 2004, p. 471). The traditional method of correcting without explanation because ‘Standard English is the one and only type’ has obviously failed and continues to fail black students. I think the statistics on page 472 of Wheeler and Swords are incredibly alarming and show a need for something to change regarding standardized testing scores and the longer black students stay in school the worse off their test scores become. But again, as you point out, this doesn’t simply begin and end with African American students. “Minority language children seem to be confronting a brick wall when it comes to performance on standardized tests,” (p. 472).
Unfortunately it is not as simple as yes or no as I answered above. If taught poorly or in an inappropriate manner or not taught at all, “it can be very damaging human experience for an AAVE-speaking child to learn Mainstream American English while the teacher dismisses AAVE as broken and error-filled,” (Wheeler &Swords, p. 471). However, I believe if we are able to “bring the child’s language and culture into the classroom,” as suggested by Wheeler and Swords and we are able to show that we accept, value, accept, and so on the child, his/her culture, choice of language, demonstrating an equality rather than a sense of inferiority/superiority of one or another, and thus in that way teach code switching, I certainly believe it would be a great tool (and a necessary and vital tool) to teach. Obviously, this is far easier said than done! But I would certainly believe it would benefit students on standardized tests and moving forward in literature in general. Individuals who speak or learn more than one language typically have a better grasp/command and understanding of language overall – so, I would believe this would hold true about having knowledge/understanding on a “diverse range of language forms” and patters would have a better and more defined command of the English language on the whole.
Addy, similar to Rachal and you, I read the Wheeler first and then the Young article. I was first amazed by Wheeler and Swords article because it was so simple to explain to the student how to code switch and why it is essential to master in the schools. To spend time each day/moment to correct language to be more SAE. Then Young flipped it upside down and sideways on me.
ReplyDeleteNow, I grew up in New Hampshire, which means that yes, I have a unique dialect (Yankee) and my wife does not like it. I swear she thinks my IQ drops 50 points when I visit my home town. I code switch right back into using “ah” at the end of words ending in “r” and I add “r” to any word ending in the letter “a.” All that it takes is talking to one local by the time we hit Vermont. Then it is on. It is part of me, and it will never go away. I have had to learn over the years how to code switch back to SAE when I return to Indiana. After all, Indiana/Illinois is the preferred TV dialect.
“Cook’s View, blacks should develop a dual personality, acting and speaking one way with whites, another with blacks in recognition of “the two-ness of the world their involved in” (Young, p.56). Here we sit at Enlace Academy where 70% of the students code switch or show their two-ness every day. Is Enlace Academy teaching them to code switch? I wonder? Since there is not a Standard America English, then I think we as teachers need to teach our students how to communicate the most effective way. If it means code switching or Code meshing then we need to do it. I for one will be code meshing into a classroom next semester since I am monolingual.
I am still left with more questions than answer, again this week. I hope our discussion tomorrow will help unravel the mystery.