When we think of ELLs, we think of multilingualism and at times may not consider the dialects spoken, or give a conscious awareness to accents. There are many immigrants arriving from the Caribbean, and meeting the needs of these learners’ falls within the ESL umbrella. Also, not only students, but teachers as well may have dialects and/or accents. There are different opinions about this. Some argue that this is not an issue and that as teachers and learners in today’s multicultural world, we should be more tolerant to the varieties of English.
On the other hand there are those who argue that this may or may not be a problem depending on what teachers are teaching. Teachers with strong accents may not be good choices for “speaking” classes but can be effective in teaching other aspects of language learning (i.e., reading, writing, grammar etc.). This is a complex and often sensitive and political issue. To be fair, most complex issues are rather political and ideological rather than based in only theoretical discussions. Jamaican-English is not broken-English, it’s a variety of English. Australian, Canadian and American-English are also considered varieties of English, but some linguists consider them to be dialects. There is quite a large amount of literature on non-native speaking teachers of English discussing this complex and often sensitive issue. Robert Phillipson is one name associated with work in this area. Several journals have addressed this topic, including TESOL Quarterly and the ELT journal.
The English language is so difficult to comprehend due to its multiple meanings and possible misinterpretations which are always issues for ELLs. For example, an ELL parent may say “my son forgot his tablet”. This at times can be interpreted as medication such as an acetaminophen pill to treat headaches, or it could be interpreted to mean an electronic device used in school.
For this task, you will be conducting your own research based on the questions below. Try to find Canadian sources to back up your findings and provide an overall reflection that enables others to better understand accents and dialects, and how this has a huge impact within the school community. Ensure that you review Ministry documents that support the ESL and ELD programs as well as antiracist, diversity and equitable practices that support your views.
Think about the misinterpretations and relate and make connections to the following questions.
Are there any downfalls of a teacher teaching with a strong accent?
How do teachers with accents and dialects affect the classroom and student learning in Ontario schools?
Can the use of dialects and accents have detrimental effects or positive effects?
Is there a difference supporting an ELL from the Caribbean?
How is this related to pronunciation?
Are all dialects considered an issue?
How can we assess these issues?
What are the implications for parents with accents/dialects?
Think About:
Read the sentence below.
Me na know if them gan ova there.
You will also gather research to back up your thoughts based on the questions below.
Do students from the Caribbean spell the way they talk? What are some of the language barriers they may face as well as the teachers in the classroom? Does speed of their dialect affect learning and processing? How would you interpret the sentence above?
You will write a 1 page single spaced reflection on how this is a Social Justice issue and how it directly affects you and the ELLs in today’s classrooms.
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-school-boards-desperately-short-of-french-language-teachers-report/
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/the-accent-effect-toronto-4-1.4407769
https://www.bbc.com/news/education-39028994
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