ON THE SOCIAL PERCEPTION OF LANGUAGE VARIATIONS: BLACK DIALECT AND EXPECTATIONS OF ABILITY0

Samples of taped read.gs recorded by a black and a white speaker, each reading the identical two stories, were played to four groups of white teachers, 87 in number. The latter were asked to evaluate certain characteristics of the speakers, using an adjective checklist and multiple choice questions. Results indicated that the black speaker and his language were rated less favorably and triggered lower expectations about his ability and future academic achievement. The effects of the stories and interactions are described and the implications thereof for teacher training related to the teaching of reading are discussed. It is held that training and retraining programs need to provide teachers with the opportunity to explore their own attitudes about language variation in addition to information about linguistic differences. Copies of the stories used in the stady and tables carrying test data are appended. (Rd) co CD tr