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From: Richard Wojcik <rickw@eskimo.com>
Subject: Re: Ebonics, the LAD, and PC
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Allen Gardner wrote:
> 
> Most of the posts to this group seem to support the claim that second
> language learners cannot equal the skill of native speakers.  This
> conforms to the Chomskyite postulation of a species-specific, human
> Language Acquisition Device (LAD) which must for - biologically
> imperative reasons - operate during a critical early period.  In this
> view, the impairment is the same, whether there was a total absence of
> a first language model or a different first language model during the
> critical period.  Within this theory of a species-specific, human LAD
> poor black kids deprived of the dominant English model during their
> critical period must forever fail.  This must be the Chomskyite
> position whether there is a bona fide separate language that we should
> call ebonics or there is an underclass, illiterate, reduced version of
> English that we should call black english.

You should beware of reading too much into the "Chomskyite" conception of
innateness.  The Oakland school board made some embarrassing statements about
genetic predispositions toward language, and they have had to retreat from
them under criticism from the linguistic community.  In fact, nobody disagrees
that language is innate--a human instinct--but there is a wide range of 
opinions on just *what* is innate.  The "Ebonics" issue has absolutely nothing
to do with innateness or genetics.  Repeat: nothing.  It is about whether or
not one should apply foreign language teaching methodology to this particular
situation.  Even those who criticize the Oakland board for their mistatements
seem to agree that this approach to teaching standard, literary English has 
merit.  

> If there is a species-specific, human LAD with a critical period then,
> whatever the schools do, poor black kids must remain hopelessly
> impaired in relation to kids who acquired the dominant version of
> English as a first language.  At best a Chomskyite linguist can only
> recommend that we wean children away from ebonics or black english at
> the earliest possible moment.

The term "LAD" sticks in my throat :), but the critical-period nature of
language learning is well-established.  Chomsky neither observed it first
nor made it into a major feature of his approach to innateness.  Rather, 
it is just an observation about language that lends support to innateness.
Believing in it does not tell you much about the ability of of children
to acquire new dialects.  Linguists do not counsel adults to abandon all
hope of learning foreign languages either.  All it means is that your method
of acquiring new languages/dialects changes radically after you reach a 
certain biological threshold.  Besides, the idea is not to "wean" children
away from their native dialects but to train them in the use of standard,
literary English.  That doesn't require them to give up anything, just to
learn something new.  One of the things that "Ebonics" changes is our 
attitude towards nonstandard English.  You don't teach children a new dialect
by using unjustified and incorrect arguments to stigmatize their native
dialect.  That may motivate some children to learn the target dialect, but
it just depresses and discourages others.
 
> I cannot see why so many dedicated academic liberals fail to see this
> politically incorrect implication of Chomskyite linguistics.

Even some academic conservatives may fail to see this "implication" of
"Chomskyite linguistics".  And with good reason.  It doesn't exist.

-- 
Rick Wojcik                                       Bellevue, WA
rickw@eskimo.com                                  http://www.eskimo.com/~rickw
