The fact is that the Oakland Ebonics controversy revealed that there remains a subculture in America whose ideas are unheard. There remains a segment of American society that refuses to adopt the mainstream method of communication and, instead, chooses to adopt an alternative form. These individuals do not necessarily equate success with the adoption of middle class values and the middle class style of life. For these individuals the ability to utilize standard English is not a goal and the learning of such skills is a wasted effort by educators. It is just another example of "busy work" in school that many find boring and frustrating.
The Oakland School Board's action brought into focus how language defines differences between races and classes in the United States. The Board's action diminished the value of standard English and placed Ebonics on an equal footing. This bothered the status quo. The status quo viewed standard English as a symbol of mainstream America and the allowance of another form of English was seen as a threat. To be considered a true American one had to speak and use standard English. To use any form of English was to be less of an American. This same logic is being used today in arguing against the widespread use of Spanish.
The Oakland School Board experiment was seen as being too radical. The American public and media reacted strongly to the actions of the Oakland Board. The Board tried an approach to assist their students and increase their language skills that was highly unconventional but they were never afforded the opportunity to test whether the approach might have worked. Instead, the Board retreated quickly and conformed to the pressures being placed on them from every direction. It will never be known whether allowing Oakland students to use...
The idea was never allowed to develop to fruition. The linguistic revolution in Oakland was virtually ended before it began. It remains for future generations to determine whether such an experiment might have been successful.
Socially, two cultures have developed in the United States and nothing demonstrates this more clearly than the debate that occurred over the usage of Ebonics in the Oakland School District. Regardless of what one might think about the appropriateness of the Board's actions, it must be admitted that they were attempting to address the problem. There is little doubt that the language skills of Black students impede their ability to compete on an equal basis with other students who are exposed to standard English more regularly. In the final analysis this is all the Oakland School Board was attempting to address. Unfortunately less creative minds were allowed to interfere and enforce their will upon the Oakland School Board. In the process, what could have been a wonderful social experiment was quashed.
Works Cited
Applebome, Peter. "Dispute over Ebonics Reflects a Volatile Mix that Roils Urban Education." New York Times 1 March 1997.
Norton, Boony. "Language, Identity, and the Ownership of English." TESOL Quarterly (1997): 409-429.
Ramirez, David. Ebonics (New Perspectives on Language and Education. Bristol, UK: Multilingual Matters, 2005.
Rickford, John R. What is Ebonics. Research. Washington, D.C.: Linguistic Society of America, 2002.
Williams, Robert L. "The Ebonics Controversy." Journal of Black Psychology (1997): 208-214.
Slang and its relation to society
