Theme for project 4

The theme that I have chosen for my project is how to help further the knowledge of Americans on the topics of Ebonics. I am going to set up a course description. In the course I am going to dispel some of the myths around African American Vernacular English. Also I am going to talk about the structure and the functions of AAVE, to do this I am going to present the class with different perspectives of AAVE and engage them in activities that will help them to understand how and why AAVE is important. The reason that I have chose to do my project based on this theme is that while I was writing my last paper I realized that me, myself, didn’t understand how important AAVE can be in the classroom and other areas.

The first genre I am going to make is a report about the effects of taking the course. The report will describe the meaning and the intentions of the course. Also it will explain what the teacher will have the students be doing and engaging in throughout the course. Then I will provide examples of the projects and articles that are going to be presented to students. I want to engage students with new perspectives and ideas about AAVE.

Another genre that I am going to use is a newspaper article. In the article I am going to discuss Black English, its origin and how it was thought to be a misuse of Standard English when really it does have its own rules. The sources I am going to use for my article are probably going to be the article written by Ball “Expository Writing Patterns” and Smitherman’s article “It Bees dat Way Sometimes”. Also I may pull of few things from an article that I found online called “Black English”. I am going to have students read my article and demonstrate my theme to them.

I intend to use poetry as another way to demonstrate AAVE to students. I chose this genre because I saw poems while I was doing research on the topic and I thought this was a good way to help better understand the topic. Its something to read that is different from reading article after article and it will help keep students focused. The poem will show students that Ebonics isn’t just slang and that it is important and has meaning. For this poem I will most likely use the source written by Gilyard and Richardson “Student’s Right to Their Own Language”.

Then I am going to create a worksheet. In my worksheet students will have to answer questions that relate to and contrast patterns of AAVE and Standard English. In order to do this I am going to use a few sources that I found online such as “Codeswitching: Tools of Language and Culture Transform the Dialectally Diverse Classroom” by Rebecca Wheeler and Rachel Swords.

Finally I am going to show the class a letter exchange held between two African American students that are discussing the Ebonics in the classroom controversy. The conversation will have uses of Ebonics and Standard English and it will demonstrate the use of codeswitching. For this genre I am going to use the article “It Bees Dat Way Sometimes” written by Smitherman and also I am going to use sources that I can find online on the topic.

IAR Paper 3

IAR Analysis




What is invention? (What activities did the writer have to engage in to create the text?)

Research and Analysis of scholarly journals on composition studies
Analysis of class readings
Deciding on a problem to discuss and support

What is being invented? (What ideas, practices, arguments, etc. are created by the text?)

African American Vernacular English (AAVE) has a place in the classroom
AAVE is not just slang, but is important
How to make students better writers
How to build confidence in students

What is being arranged? (What is being put in relation to what?)

AAVE in relation to the classroom
Examples in relation to AAVE in the classroom
Examples in relation to solutions to AAVE use

What is arrangement? (How are things being put in relation to one another?)

Examples of people’s experiences
Proof from studies that have been done
Compare and contrast
Specific Quotes from scholars

What is being revised? (What is the writer trying to change (e.g. what ideas, practices, etc.)?)

Trying to change racism done on students writings by teachers
That AAVE IS important in the classroom
AAVE and other home languages can be incorporated when teaching Standard English

What is revision? (What strategies are engaged specifically to help the writer achieve the revisions?)

Examples of studies done that provide solutions to the problem
Examples and experiences from specific scholars