The Language They Speak The Culture They Bring

The Language They Speak The Culture They Bring A Presentation by Miguel G. Mendívil, AEMP/SEL Closing the Achievement Gap Specialist Los Angeles Unified School District, Local District 6 Professional Development Session 2005 -2006 (miguel. mendivil@lausd. net ) 323 -278 -3902

Culturally Responsive Pedagogy Linguistically Responsive Teaching

Standard English Learners

Mexican American SELs

African American SELs

Hawaiian American SELs

Native American SELs

Language Development in Children Language in Communicative Context Language as a Meaning System PRAGMATICS The level of language as it functions and is used in a social context. SEMANTICS The level of meaning of individual words and of word relationships in messages SYNTAX The level of combination of words into acceptable phrases, clauses, and sentences Language as a Structured, Rule-Governed System MORPHOLOGY The level of combination of sounds into basic units of meaning (morphemes) PHONOLOGY The level of combination of features of sounds into significant speech sounds

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF AFRICAN AMERICAN LANGUAGE DEFICIT PERSPECTIVE DIALECTOLOGISTS VIEW DIFFERENCE THEORIES CREOLIST HYPOTHESIS ETHNOLINGUISTIC THEORY

WEST AFRICAN (Niger-Congo) LANGUAGES THAT INFLUENCED AAL • • Bambara Ewe Fanta Fon Fula Hausa Igbo Ibibio • • Kimbundu Longo Mandinka Mende Twi Umbundu Wolof Yoruba Source: Turner, Lorenzo “Africanisms In The Gullah Dialect” 1973

Ebonics is the linguistic and paralinguistic features which on a concentric continuum represent the communicative competence of the west African, Caribbean, and the United States slave descendants of African origin. Williams (1973)

African American Language (AAL) (African American Language) refers to the linguistic and paralinguistic features of the language that represents the communicative competence of the United States slave descendants of African origin. Adapted from Williams (1973)

LINGUISTIC SOCIETY OF AMERICA Excerpt from: Resolution Issued, Chicago, Illinois, January 3, 1997 n The variety known as “Ebonics. ” “African American Vernacular English” (AAVE), and “Vernacular Black English” and by other names is systematic and rule-governed like all natural speech varieties. In fact, all human linguistic systems. . . are fundamentally regular. The systematic and expressive nature of the grammar and pronunciation patterns of the African American vernacular has been established by numerous scientific studies over the past thirty years. Characterizations of Ebonics as “slang, ” “mutant, ” “lazy, ” “defective, ” “ungrammatical, ” or ‘broken English” are incorrect and demeaning.

Characteristic Linguistic Features of African American Language

CHARACTERISTIC PHONOLOGICAL FEATURES OF AFRICAN AMERICAN LANGUAGE PHONOLOGICAL VARIABLE MAINSTREAM AMERICAN ENGLISH AFRICAN AMERICAN LANGUAGE CONSONANT CLUSTER DESK, TEST, COLD DES, TES, COL / TH / SOUND THIS, THIN, MOUTH DIS, TIN, MOUF / R / SOUND SISTER, CAROL SISTA, CA’OL STRESS PATTERNS PO LICE’, HO TEL’ PO’LICE, HO’TEL / SOUND ALWAYS, MILLION A’WAYS, MI’ION

CHARACTERISTIC GRAMMATICAL FEATURES OF AFRICAN AMERICAN LANGUAGE LINGUISTIC VARIABLE MAINSTREAM AMERICAN ENGLISH AFRICAN AMERICAN LANGUAGE LINKING VARIABLE He is going He going POSSESSIVE MARKER John’s cousin John cousin PLURAL MARKER I have five cents I have five cent VERB AGREEMENT He runs home He run home HABITUAL “BE” She is often at home She be at home

Third Person Singular Mainstream American English: Irregular Third Person Singular I swim you swim he swims Plural we swim you swim they swim African American Language: Regular Third Person Singular I swim you swim he swim Plural we swim you swim they swim

Past Tense Copula Verbs Mainstream American English: Irregular Past Tense Singular I was you were he was Plural we were you were they were African American Language: Regular Past Tense Singular I was you was he was Plural we was you was they was

Spoken and Written Language Samples of African American SELs

Language Sample: 5 -year-old African American Child n I been known how to count. n She want to know can she ride her bike. n She jump rope n The mother dress n The mommie purse

Xikanos Mexican American History, Culture and Language

Mexican American Culture This Mestizo (Afro-indo Hispano) population residing in the Southwest United States came into being far before their identification and conquest by the present North American hegemony of culture. We will then begin at that historical juncture; Texas, 1836.

Mexico 1830 Southwest US ?

Mexican American War 1846 -1848 War is declared after the fact. n Treaty of Guadalupe de Hidalgo 1848 ends the War n Treaty Guarantees n n n title to lands held by Mexicans dual citizenship bilingual education for all Mexican-Americans and their descendants in perpetuity.

Lt. Ulysses S. Grant “For myself, I was bitterly opposed to the measure, and to this day regard the War which resulted as one of the most unjust ever waged by a stronger against a weaker nation. It was an instance of a republic following the bad example of European monarchies, in not considering justice in their desire to acquire additional territory. ” Personal Memoirs of U. S. Grant. Webster Pub. 1885. Chapter 3, Army life - Causes of the Mexican War - Camp Salubrity

Emergence of Chicano Spanish n Chicano Spanish is first and foremost Mexican Spanish with a number of lexical borrowings from English. (Sanchez 1994) n This in no way suggests a definite time in history but an approximate opportunity for the use of Varieties of Spanish spoken in the Southwest. n The intersection of: A. Standard Spanish B. Popular Urban Spanish C. Popular Rural Spanish

Chicano Spanish Examples Loanwords: traques (tracks) dompe, triela, yardas, lotes, plogues, carpetas, waxeaban or mapeaban With Autos; troca, cranque, cloche, estarear, suiche, puche, parquear, rite, y bos

Chicano Spanish Examples Articulated: n Shoes were chaineados rather than lustrados n People were fuleados rather than engañados n Housewives paid biles rather than cuentas n Instead of saying se sale la agua they say la llave liquea. n Chicanos started eating lonches, aiscrin and drinking birria de la grocería o la marqueta while they were wachando la tele or reading el magasín.

Decade of Betrayal 1930 to 1940

Mexican Americans n 1930 -1940 Repatriation Act. Legal deportation of Mexicans and their Mexican American children (and some adult Mexican Americans) back to Mexico. n Suspension of dual citizenship and inception of Residency (green) cards for all Mexicans. Mexican Americans had to declare National Sovereignty to either the U. S. or Mexico. n

Lemon Grove School District vs Roberto R. Alvarez 1931

Lemon Grove SD vs Roberto R. Alvarez 1931 “Mexican American children can attend school with whites and could no longer be segregated in San Diego schools. ” Although integrating the schools, it did so by holding that Mexicans American Children were “white” (not Indian) and could not be segregated. California law continued to allow segregation of whites from Asians, blacks, and Native Americans. ”

Emergence of Caló Chicanos upon returning from their forced repatriation and joining with the Mexican American youth in the Barrios of the Southwest together create and speak a language (de nuestro) of ours, which is neither the language of the dominant culture English nor the Spanish of Mexicans who coined them “Pocho. ”

Emergence of Caló n Y que ondas con las jainas, donde cantonean. n What’s with those girls? Where do they live? n Orale pues, ‘tonces alli te guacho en tu canton. n Alright, then I’ll see you at your house.

Caló - then and now. n Referring to girls: Moras, rucas, jainas, chavalas, güisa n Ahi nos vidrios. n Ya estufas. n Simon. Sirol. n ¿Qué pasión? n Loans from English: Chante (shanty), songa (song), Taya (tie), biria (beer)

Xikano language Choices “ The Chicano population is a heterogeneous minority characterized by significant differences in generation, nativity, residency, occupation, income, education and language choice. ” (Sanchez, 1994, P. 6) Thus it is impossible to talk about Chicanos of the Southwest as if they were a homogeneous entity. (Sanchez, 1994, p 60)

Linguistic Variations n Chicano English n Chicano Spanish n Caló n Spanglish n Pocho n Bilingual Spanish and English

Blooms Taxonomy of Critical Thought n KNOWLEDGE LEVEL: Learn the Information n Define, list, label, memorize, etc. n COMPREHENSION LEVEL: Understand the Information n Express in other terms, illustrate, paraphrase. n APPLICATION LEVEL: Use the Information n Demonstrate, construct, convert, generalize. n ANALYSIS LEVEL: Break the Information Down to its Component Parts n Analyze, compare, contrast, debate, infer. n SYNTHESIS LEVEL: Put Information Together in New and Different Ways n Build, combine, create, imagine, propose. n EVALUATION LEVEL: Judge the Information n. Assess, defend, critique, rank, verify. This is not hierarchical, although SEL's tend to do the last three due to their unique Learning style/strength!

Chicano English Linguistic Variations For the sake of this discussion Chicano English refers to the variation of language utilized by English Only speaking Mexican Americans residing in the United States of America. Yet, we may review the literature by tracing its etymological sequence over 500 years of colonization.

Chicano English A definition: The linguistic and paralinguistic features of the language spoken by members of the Chicano/a or Mexican American community united by ancestry in the Southwestern United States and/or Mexico. CE is systematic, rule governed, and based on a Spanish substratum. Adapted from Ornstein-Galicia (1988)

Spanish Substratum: Latin American Spanish vs Castilian from Spain Spanish of the ‘new world’ is like Castilian Spanish of Spain in that they share the same Syntax while deviating in phonology, morphology, semantics and pragmatics with languages indigenous to the cultures of the Americas.

Chicano English LF: Consonant Cluster Production Word Final Consonants in Chicano English The Chicano English phonological rule does not permit the production of consonants in clusters in the following contexts. When both consonant sounds are voiced: nd, vs, zd ex: CE (mine) MAE (mind) ex: CE (lifes) MAE (lives) ex: CE (price) MAE (prized) When both consonant sounds are voiceless: st, kt ex: CE (worse) MAE (worst) ex: CE (strick) MAE (strict)

Chicano English LF: CH / SH Digraph Merging of the /ch/ and /sh/ digraph Chicano English is characterized by a unique merging of the ch sound with the sh sound and vice versa. CE tesher reash wash chy chop share beash MAE teacher reach watch shy shop chair beach

Chicano English LF: Stress Patterns In Chicano English Language, stress is often placed on one syllable prefixes as well as roots. The stress on one syllable prefixes and roots is elongated. CE tooday MAE today deecide decide reefuse reepeat reesist resist

Chicano English LF: Regularization, Irregular 3 rd person in MAE Singular I jump you jump he jumps Mainstream American English: He jumps rope to get into shape. Chicano English: He jump rope to get into shape. Plural we jump you jump they jump

Chicano English Indefinite article MAE: Irregular Indefinite Article Before a consonant A girl Before a vowel An umbrella Chicano English: Regular Indefinite Article Before a consonant A girl Before a vowel A umbrella MAE: A girl opened an umbrella when it began to rain. CE: A girl opened a umbrella when it began to rain.

Chicano English LF: Omission of Past tense marker In Chicano English the past tense marker is dropped when forming a separate syllable at the end of a word. Mainstream American English: /-t/ following voiceless consonants /-d/ following voiced consonants /id/ following word final /t/ or /d/ ex: cooked ex: moved ex: kidded EX: Mainstream American English: Past Tense Yesterday he started selling newspapers. EX: Chicano English: When forming a separate syllable Yesterday he start selling newspapers.

Chicano English LF: Omission of plural Marker Plural Marker Mainstream American English /-s/ following voiceless sounds ex: five cents /-z/ following voiced sounds ex: different foods /-iz/ following “hissing” sounds ex: kisses ditches Chicano English: The plural marker /s/ is dropped when forming a separate syllable. Mainstream American English: ex: She opened one of the packages. Chicano English: ex: She open one of the package.

Chicano English LF: Multiple Negation Mainstream American English: Double negation or multiple negatives are not evident. Chicano English: Double or multiple negatives are evident. MAE: I didn’t have a birthday party or anything. CE: I didn’t have no birthday party or noothing.

Chicano English LF: Semantics/Lexicon (ELA variety) Use of Intensifiers before adjectives This intensifier replaces the colloquial use of terrible and very. Examples: ALL 1. He’s all proud, passing out papers and all. 2. The Movie was all weird. This intensifier replaces the colloquial use of really or real. Examples: FOR REALS 1. Did you give it to her for reals? 2. He didn’t know it was for reals. 3. No for reals a, did you sell your car for reals?

Chicano English LF: Semantics/Lexicon (ELA variety) This intensifier replaces the colloquial use of timeliness or scarcity. Examples: BARELY 1. He barely came yesterday. (Meaning , ”He got her just yesterday. ) 2. A, I barely have two pieces a. (Meaning, “I only have two pieces)

Chicano English LF: Homophones Chicano English Language Homophones Due to the influence of CE phonological rules, many words that are not homophones (words that sound alike but are spelled different) in English are homophonous in CE. Examples: MAE CE find fine Ex: I fine everting fas teasher. ten tin Ex: I jus hab tin cent teasher fuzz fuss Ex: He tinks he all bad caus he hab fuss on his face.

CE: Articulated n We are all tankful for you coming and teashing us some stuff too. n Tas after school, no? n Tank you for giving me dis chance to learn how to speak this language of ar pas tribe. n Can I no of my culture. n My feets go that way. n Why you sistur like it? n I seen you do it a.

Spanglish English Hay te watcho. I’ll see you later. Nos vemos al rato. Quiero confleis. I want corn flakes. Quiero cereal. Chatear On line chatting. Sammy Sosa se hecho homron. Sammy Sosa hit a Homerun. There is currently no Spanish equivelent. Sammy Sosa pegó un un cuadrangular. ¿Quieres un jambergue un sanguiche para lonche? Do you want a hamburger or a sandwich for lunch? ¿Por que me puchas? Why are you pushing me? ¿Donde parqueates el carro? Spanish ¿Quieres una hamburguesa o torta para el almuerzo? ¿Por qué me empujas? Where did you park the car? ¿Dónde estacionaste el automóvil?

Caló English Spanish Balas Helada Quehuvo/Quiuvo Totacho Gabacho Bote Broda Cachucha Calcos Chamba Estar culeco Hecho la cochinilla Kikear Librería No se aguite beans beer hello english language anglo-american (Derog) jail brother cap shoes work to be in love In a hurry to kick library Don’t get upset. frijoles cerveza hola ingles Anglo-Americano carcel hermano gorro zapatos trabajo estar enamorado De prisa. patear biblioteca No se enoje.

Nahuatl, the language spoken by the Mexica (Aztec) people of Central Mexico prior to the Spanish Conquest. Here are some words in Nahuatl translated into English and Spanish. You can see some words in Spanish have been taken directly from Nahuatl Spanish English Atl Auakatl Chocolatl Elotl Koyotl Tomatl Xochitl Tekolotl Tamalli Chilli Aguacate Chocolate Elote Coyote Tomate Flor Tecolote Tamal Chile Water Avocado Chocolate Corn Coyote Tomato Flower Owl Tamale Chile

Blooms Taxonomy of Critical Thought n KNOWLEDGE LEVEL: Learn the Information n Define, list, label, memorize, etc. n COMPREHENSION LEVEL: Understand the Information n Express in other terms, illustrate, paraphrase. n APPLICATION LEVEL: Use the Information n Demonstrate, construct, convert, generalize. n ANALYSIS LEVEL: Break the Information Down to its Component Parts n Analyze, compare, contrast, debate, infer. n SYNTHESIS LEVEL: Put Information Together in New and Different Ways n Build, combine, create, imagine, propose. n EVALUATION LEVEL: Judge the Information n. Assess, defend, critique, rank, verify. This is not hierarchical, although SEL's tend to do the last three due to their unique Learning style/strength!

Culturally Connected Cognitive Thinking and Learning Styles “Many African American, Latino, Native American, and Asian American students use styles of inquiry and responding different from those employed most often in classrooms…most common practice…is to ask convergent (single-answer) questions… deductive approaches to solving problems. Emphasis is given to details, to building the whole from the parts, to moving from specific to general. Discourse tends to be didactic…” Geneva Gay (2000)

Blooms Taxonomy of Critical Thought Deductive Reasoning Model KOWLEDGE LEVEL COMPREHENSION LEVEL Learn the Information Define, list, label, memorize, etc. Understand the Information Express in other terms, illustrate, paraphrase. APPLICATION LEVEL Use the Information Demonstrate, construct, convert, generalize. SYNTHESIS LEVEL Put Information Together in New and Different Ways Build, combine, create, imagine, propose. ANALYSIS LEVEL Break the Information Down to its Component Parts Analyze, compare, contrast, debate, infer. EVALUATION LEVEL Judge the Information Assess, defend, critique, rank, verify.

Culturally Connected Cognitive Thinking and Learning Styles “In comparison, students of color who are strongly affiliated with their traditional cultures tend to be more inductive, interactive, and communal in task performance…preference for inductive problem solving is expressed as reasoning from the whole to parts, from the general to the specific. The focus is on the ‘big picture, ’ the pattern, the principle. In traditional African American and Latino cultures, problem solving is highly contextual. ” Geneva Gay (2000)

Blooms Taxonomy of Critical Thought Inductive Reasoning Model (SEL & EL) APPLICATION LEVEL Use the Information Demonstrate, construct, convert, generalize. COMPREHENSION LEVEL Understand the Information Express in other terms, illustrate, paraphrase. KOWLEDGE LEVEL Learn the Information Define, list, label, memorize, etc. ANALYSIS LEVEL Break the Information Down to its Component Parts Analyze, compare, contrast, debate, infer. SYNTHESIS LEVEL Put Information Together in New and Different Ways Build, combine, create, imagine, propose. EVALUATION LEVEL Judge the Information Assess, defend, critique, rank, verify.

Culturally Connected Cognitive Thinking and Learning Styles n n n Inductive Reasoning View Environment as a Whole Communal/Collaborative Learners, Socio-Centric Contextual Learners Verbal and Non-Verbal Communication Meta-Cognitive Linguistic/Lexiconal Competency n n Oral language (ex: Ruca/Vato/Simón, Tdat’s Au Right Aye or Later Aye, Right Now? , Phat/Crib/My Bad, Dat’s Tight or Dat’s Sweet) Written language (ex: Poetry, Drama, etc. ) n Spatial Competency n Movement/Visual Expressive

Culturally Relevant Literature Once students learn to appreciate literature in the context of their own culture, they can better appreciate the literature of other cultures.

“…for students who experience disproportionate levels of academic failure, the extent to which the students’ language and culture are incorporated into the school program constitutes a significant predictor of academic success” Jim Cummins, 1989

Literacy Support for SELs n Literacy is an extension of natural language learning n School literacy experiences n n n must be built around the language of the child. Must draw upon the experiences of students for learning to be meaningful and relevant provide linguistic and cultural benefits to children.

Culturally Relevant Literature n Supports the acquisition of school literacy n Affirms Home Culture and Language n Supports the Acquisition of Academic Language n Oral language n Written language n Captures Interest and motivates students to read (SSR, FVR, Reading For a Purpose, etc. )

Written Language Sample From a District 6 School: First Grade Mexican American Student

Written Language Sample From a District 6 School: First Grade Mexican American Student

Written Language Sample From a District 6 School: First Grade Mexican American Student Didn’t Mean Plural Regularized Verb: eat 3 rd p. s.

Written Language Sample From a District 6 School: First Grade Mexican American Student

Written Language Sample From a District 6 School: First Grade Mexican American Student Inverted Topicalization

Written Language Sample From a District 6 School: Third Grade Mexican American Student

Written Language wh Consonant Sample Cluster Lexiconal From a District 6 School: Placement Over Phonology of hui Cluster Nahuatl (Uto-Aztecan) Sound Third Grade Mexican American Student Phraseology: Conditional Use of the Past Tense, the Condition of the Present/Future May be Avoiding the ed Marker Vowel Consonant Vowel Pattern

Written Language Sample From a District 6 School: Third Grade Mexican American Student

Written Language Consonant Sample Vowel Pattern From a District 6 Phraseology: Conditional of the Past School: Use Tense, the Condition of the Present/Future Third Grade Mexican American Student

Teaching Strategies: Well Intentioned Teachable Moments Yet Based Upon a Deficit Perspective: n Correct and edit the student’s work n Tell the student good first draft, now go correct it n Praise the student in their effort and their multiple paragraph narrative and then facilitate a self editing session.

Culturally Responsive Strategies: Teachable Moments Based Upon a Linguistic Capitol Perspective Linguistic Contrastive Analysis: n Using literature, poetry, songs, plays, student elicited sentences and writing, or prepared story scripts which incorporate examples of specific SAE and AAL or SAE and CE form contrasts, the student performs contrastive analysis translations to determine the underlying rules that distinguish the two language forms. n Lessons address specific features: n n n Phonetic Lexical Grammatical

Dark I have another hue. It moves with colors running quiet. As when the first genetic goo, mother to the first bacteria, Gelled in darkened pools, hot On a planet with toxic sky. This shade bubbling in the infant burning Birth, gestated gray orange in black space. This membrane underneath my red skin Linked to cosmic fossils, It tells me, “See, I was born there In that fiery crust surrounded by raven Nothingness. I pang for the night sky. ” I began indigenous, pure In my mother’s fluids, before the doctor’s Cold gloves forced my soft brown head From a primordial universe of liquid songs.

Dark, Continued Since then, every face I’ve snuggled Is obsidian, cinnamon, crimson. My thoughts are enveloped in Mexica Rose interwoven with oral tradition Sprouted from Tohono O’odham scarlet. All my mistakes breathe through Yoeme Beige. Triumphs, bursted onto East L. A. playgrounds with tints of matrilineal sable. My verse dry crumbles onto paper from hand Muscles encased in red clay found Underneath the pines east of Kingman, Arizona, the red bronze dating back To the Big Bang itself.

Dark, Continued Even the conquistador’s acids trickling Through my arteries, seeping from the first Rape in the New World, Cradle in Moorish chestnut. I cruise 7 th street among skid row Drag queens hoping to venerate Asphalt/concrete with spirits of ten Thousand-year-old women skinning Rabbits. I want to possess every MTA Bus stop with ghosts of Tongva Boys playing with the entrails Of dead seals. I pray in Yaqui So I won’t forget I was once indigenous

Dark, Continued And it ended in a downtown Maternity ward. I eat pan dulce and pan Perdido to drown my guts With my mother’s dirt. The dirt that stuck In her toenails when she walked barefoot On her father’s farm, the dirt of Mexico. I Live on the fringe of a millennium to remind Others of temples bludgeoned, their colors Desiccated, to remind me of a history Determined as water breaking before labor. I have a dark side and I see that it is good. By José Mendívil From his book of poems titled: Blood Lines; Poetry by José Mendívil © 2004 by José Mendívil