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Language and Literacy Connections for Children Who are African American

Florida State University and the Florida Center for Reading Research
Tallahassee, FL

Focusing on the links between language and literacy, this paper discusses possible reasons for the persistent reading skill gap between African American and White children. Three theories that describe the mechanisms through which the use of African American English (AAE) might affect literacy learning include (a) teacher bias against AAE, (b) the mismatch between the phonological and morphosyntactic structure of AAE and Standard or Mainstream American English (SAE), and (c) the linguistic flexibility theory, which suggests that it is not the mismatch per se that interferes with literacy learning, but rather students' limited linguistic flexibility. Thus, children who have strong linguistic flexibility are able to switch between the phonological and morphosyntactic structures of AAE and text SAE facilely, but children with weaker linguistic flexibility do not. Plus, a disproportionate number of African American children live in poverty. Thus, they tend to have weaker language and vocabulary skills (and, hence, less linguistic flexibility) when compared to their more affluent peers. By promoting teachers' understanding and sensitivity to students' AAE use and encouraging the use of more effective instructional strategies that are responsive to students' skills and areas of weakness, SLPs can work with teachers to help them understand ways to support African American children's language and literacy learning.