Supporting Students Who Use African American English - How Families Can Become Strong Advocates for Their Children

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Mabel

A guidance-focused article explains how families and educators can support Black students who use African American English when schools often fail to respect language diversity. It describes how language-based prejudice can shape students’ identities and increase emotional stress, while also reducing access to appropriate assessment and resources. The piece outlines four advocacy priorities—literacy and reading development, speech-language-hearing services, individualized education plans, and support for gifted/talented students—along with practical questions families can ask educators to ensure linguistically responsive instruction and evaluation.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages3

Reading Time8 min

AccessFree to download

Building Reading and Literacy Skills

Accessing Speech, Language, and Hearing Services

Developing Individualized Education Plans

Identifying Support for Gifted and Talented Students

Supporting Students Who Use African American English How Families Can Become Strong Advocates for Their Children By Anne H. Charity Hudley, Christine Mallinson, Rachel Samuels, and Kimberly Bigelow Through our teaching and our research, we have seen the magnificent ways that Black people use language to con nect people, families, and communities across the Black diaspora. Unfortunately, Black language and culture do not always get the respect they deserve. Language-based prejudice is common in society and can play a significant and biased role in school-based experiences. It is important for families and educators to understand how racialized beliefs about language can surface in educational settings.* *For a longer version of this article written for educators, see [go.aft.org/1md](go.aft.org/1md). Anne H. Charity Hudley is the Bonnie Katz Tenenbaum Professor of Education at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Education. Christine Mallinson is the Lipitz Distinguished Professor of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences atthe University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Rachel Samuelsis an elementary student support specialist in Williamsburg, Virginia. Kimberly Bigelow is an assistant principal of literacy in Washington, DC. When students come to school using African American English, they know that many of their relatives, friends, and neighbors speak like them.1 They may also know that many of their educators do not use this variety of English. The message that African American students may internalize is that educators expect them to learn a new way of communicating—and that it may be at odds with their home language and culture. This messaging can affect students’ identities, and over time, the burden takes an emotional toll. Making matters worse, students who use varieties of African American English may not fully benefit from appropriate assessments or resources. Too often, their brilliance goes unrecognized. As a result, parents and caregivers may need to advocate for their children by connecting with key educators and community members—including guidance counselors, learning specialists, administrators, teachers, and doctors. Through advocacy, we can meet students’ needs by working together to ensure that support and resources are fully available for all Black students. This article focuses on four key educational situations where advocacy may be particularly important: (1) building reading AMERICAN EDUCATOR | FALL 2023 49 PHOTOS BY GETTY IMAGES and literacy skills; (2) accessing speech, language, and hearing services; (3) developing individualized education plans; and (4) identifying support for gifted and talented students. 1. Building Reading and Literacy Skills From the very beginning of school—preschool or kindergarten—it’s important foryour child’s teacher tobe tuned in to your home language and culture. Be sure to share your child’s strengths! As you share information about your child, ask about your school’s approach to literacy instruction. Are foundational skills being delivered through direct instruction following a specific sequence? Foundational literacy skills include sound play, letter identification, phonics, and word recognition strategies.* Reading skills are acquired as students learn how speech sounds can be represented with letters. Children’s ability to hear and manipulate speech sounds is an important pre-literacy skill. Without instruction that recognizes and valueshow speech sounds vary, children who use African American English may face challenges mapping their speech sounds onto standardized representations of English in school. In addition to asking about literacy instruction, ask about the assessments and how students are expected to progress. What literacy assessments are used and how are student results and progress shared? Many elementary schools employ reading specialists. These individuals can usually answer questions about the literacy instruction

FAQs

Why can African American English create challenges in school experiences?

Language-based prejudice is common and can lead educators to expect students to adopt a new communication style. Students may internalize that their home language and culture are at odds with school, affecting identity and emotional well-being.

What should families ask about literacy instruction and assessments?

Families are encouraged to ask how literacy instruction is delivered and which foundational skills are taught. They should also ask what literacy assessments are used, how progress is shared, and how language variation is accounted for in those assessments.

How can families advocate when students need speech, language, or hearing services?

The article notes two main challenges: over-referral when standardized assessments aren’t sensitive to language variety, and lack of familiarity with Black language. Families can advocate for appropriate assessment and request language samples from family and community for consideration.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Mabel