Table of Contents

All chapters include “Chapter Overview,” “Summary,” and “References” and most chapters include “Practical Application.”

Preface.


By Way of Introduction: Race, Culture, Ethnicity and African American English.


1.Higher Ground: The Knowledge Base of African American Language and Cultural Studies.
Linguistics.Linguistics System.African Continuities.All Languages Are Equal.Speech-Language Pathology.Biased Based Criteria.Education.African American Experience: Past and Present.Deficit Models.Multicultural Education.Pedagogical Implications.

2.Descriptive versus Prescriptive Grammar.
Contrasting Properties of Descriptive and Prescriptive Rules.Native Speaker Intuitions and Grammaticality.Grammar as a Description of Language.Dialectical Differences.Prescriptive Rules Frequently Violated by Speakers of High-Prestige Dialects.

3.African American Bilingualism.
The Situational Nature of Language Use.Sociolinguistics.The Cultural Context of Social Situations.African American Oral Literature.The Language Situation in Black America: Class Stratification or Code Switching.

4.African American Bilingualism.
What Should the Language of African Americans Be Called?Is African American Language a Different System from Standard English?The Uniqueness of the African American English Lexicon.What Type of Linguistic System Is African American Language?The Origin of African American English.

5.African American Communication Styles.
The General Communication Process.Psychological Themes.Emotional Vitality.Meanings and Values of Black and White Communication Styles and Cultures.Language Style.Core Symbols of Communication Styles.

6.Speech and Language Disorders versus Differences.
Normal Language Acquisition.Communication Disorders.

7.Diagnosis of Communication Disorders of African American Children.
The Assessment Process.Assessment Procedures.Communicating Assessment Information to Parents.Communicating with Teachers.The Written Report.

8.Educational Assessment Practices and African American Students.
Cultural Influences on the Assessment of Black Children.Legislated Nondiscriminatory Evaluation.Observation of Student Behaviors.

9.Treatment of Speech-Language Disorders.
Service Delivery for African Americans.Qualities Required to Serve African American Clients.Determining Therapy Goals from Assessment Results.Instructional Methods.

10.Facilitating Standard English Acquisition for African American Children.
Standard English.Correcting.Language Acquisition.Modeling.Role Playing.Immersion, and Grouping Strategies which Facilitate Language Acquisition.The Reading Hypothesis.The Writing Process.Dialect Readers and Multicultural Literature.

11.School Biases and African American Children.
Overrepresentation in Special Education Classes.Cultural Discontinuity.Traditional American Schools.

12.Importance of Spoken Language to Reading Skills.
Language and Literacy: The Black Child.Teacher Attitudes and Black Student's Language.Selecting Reading Materials and Activities.

13.Empowering African American Children.
Teachers' Influence on Empowerment.Building Self-Respect.Developing Positive Self-Images and Self-Esteem.Parents' Influence on Self-Esteem, Self- Discipline, and Empowerment.Parental Influence on Black Child Development.