35.2524, Diss: Applied Linguistics, Sociolinguistics, Syntax; Georgianna Ravenna: Literacy, Text Complexity and African American English

[The LINGUIST List]

LINGUIST List: Vol-35-2524. Tue Sep 17 2024. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 35.2524, Diss: Applied Linguistics, Sociolinguistics, Syntax; Georgianna Ravenna: Literacy, Text Complexity and African American English

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Date: 19-Aug-2023
From: Georgianna Ravenna [gravenna at calstateteach.net]
Subject: Dissertation Abstract


Institution: Texas Tech University
Program: English/Linguistics
Dissertation Status: Completed
Degree Date: 2023

Author: Georgianna Ravenna

Dissertation Title: Literacy, Text Complexity and African American
English

Linguistic Field(s): Applied Linguistics
                     Sociolinguistics
                     Syntax

Dissertation Director(s):

Dissertation Abstract:

ABSTRACT

Keywords: Literacy, Text Complexity, African American English

The purpose of this research was to examine linguistic differences
between grade-level texts utilizing Mainstream American English (MAE)
and African American English (AAE) to determine whether the
differences in morphosyntactic structure were significant enough to
pose reading challenges for children whose vernacular or home language
is AAE. AAE was chosen because of the persistently low language and
literacy scores attributed to African American students and because of
its large research base. Research on AAE usage has spanned the fields
of education, sociology, communication, anthropology, and popular
culture (Lanehart & Malik 2015). My hypothesis was that the cognitive
labor required in the transition from AAE, which is primarily an oral
language, to MAE in written form may create a greater processing load
for students, and this may hinder students’ ability to perform on
comprehension tests under timed test requirements.


I examined the morphosyntactic differences between four MAE texts and
four AAE texts. The four texts written in MAE were found through the
CCSS Appendix (National Governors Association for Best Practices
2010), which includes exemplars of literature for each grade level.
Those four texts fell within the range of text complexity considered
appropriate for 4th grade students. The four AAE-based texts were
taken from the 4th grade range of appropriate texts as suggested by
the Academic English Mastery Program (AEMP) and the Coretta Scott King
Book Awards website (Association 2009; District n.d.).
There were several notable morphosyntactic differences between MAE and
AAE language varieties evidenced in the respective texts. The AAE
texts tended to feature aspectual and auxiliary constructions more
frequently than the MAE texts. In addition, many grammatical features
commonly associated with AAE, such as multiple negation, absence of
copula, subject-verb agreement variations, and culture-specific
expressions were observed. The MAE texts tended to follow conventional
ideas of grammatical complexity, such as multiple dependent or
recursive embedded clauses, and the use of absolutes and free adjuncts
in the clausal structures that tend to confuse non-MAE speakers.
Syntactic structural differences between AAE and the MAE have proven
challenging for early readers (Labov 1995; Rickford & Rickford 1995;
Terry et al. 2012). Additionally, the findings affirmed that
traditional measures of text complexity for one genre may not be
appropriate for measuring the complexity of another.


The research results suggest that explicit instruction about
linguistic structure in accordance with a variety of disciplines is a
necessity for all students (Frantz et al. 2015). Moreover, the use of
culturally and linguistically responsive texts would help AAE students
develop literacy skills, in addition to making such texts part of the
elementary school curriculum (Hollie 2012). The findings of this study
contribute to research on literacy and text complexity as it relates
to non-MAE speakers. Suggestions for pedagogy and future research are
also provided.



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