Reflection on Language Attitudes

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“'Until the philosophy which holds one race superior and another inferior is finally and permanently discredited and abandoned, everywhere is war!” warned world-renowned reggae singer Robert Nesta "Bob" Marley. Previously, I never thought that this lyric could be applied to my treatment of students’ language. However, after my experience at UTT, I have come to appreciate many things. Namely, that language is a part of being human and my students’ languages are them just as much as their skin and hair.
Students’ languages are part of their identity. Unfortunately, in Trinidad and Tobago, we have the misconception that Standard English is our mother tongue and the Trinidad Creole is a deterioration of that language. The misconception is also that the Trinidad Creole should never be used in the classroom.
I have come to learn that the Trinidad Creole is a language on its own. Although many of the words are English words, the Trinidad Creole has its own elements and fulfills the functions of a language in its own right. This new knowledge which I have learned at UTT has led me to think of students’ language in a different light. That profound statement stated in the first paragraph should be remembered especially by teachers in the classroom as discriminatory attitudes towards the make-up of students (which includes their language) can easily be transferred. Language Files states that “Language makes us uniquely human (3).” Linguist John Siegel makes the point that no well-meaning teacher would intentionally try to put down his/ her students but unfortunately these principles do not always fall over into the teachers’ attitude about students vernacular varieties of English (39). This happens because one of the main accomplishments of school is the acquisition of Standard English and unfortunately, many persons view the Trinidad Creole as a barrier to this.
When we were introduced to the Language Awareness Approach, I was skeptical. I did not understand how using the students’ home language in the class would help them to learn the Standard English. I still did not fully understand the beauty of the Trinidad Creole. However, upon reflection, I realized that students have been taught traditionally for years and their failing grades have shown that this approach is not ideal. I decided to use the Language Accommodation Approach at Barataria South Secondary and I had amazing results. It is only when I saw the positive effect that using the Trinidad Creole had that my attitude truly changed towards it.
Our students’ language is part of what defines them. As educators, we must recognize this and use their language to help them learn the target language. Their success is contingent upon us having a positive attitude toward them and their total identity.















Works Cited

 

Vedrana Mihalicek, Christin Wilson. Language Files: Materials for an Introduction to Language and Linguistics. Boston Publishing Company, 2011. Print

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