Perceptions of African American English by Students in Speech-Language Pathology Programs.

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Bibliographic Details
Title:	Perceptions of African American English by Students in Speech-Language Pathology Programs.
Authors:	Hendricks, Alison Eisel¹ ahendric@buffalo.edu, Watson-Wales, Makayla¹, Reed, Paul E.²
Source:	American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology. Sep2021, Vol. 30 Issue 9, p1962-1972. 11p.
Subject Terms:	College students, Black English, Health occupations students, Dialects, Universities & colleges, Student attitudes, Speech therapists, World Wide Web, Surveys, Speech therapy education, Sound recordings, Descriptive statistics
Geographic Terms:	United States
Company/Entity:	American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
Abstract:	Purpose: Despite the increased awareness that all dialects are valid linguistic forms, perceptions of African American English (AAE) use are often negative in the general population. Students training for careers as speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are required to have coursework relating to cultural and linguistic diversity. However, little is known about the perceptions of AAE among students in SLP programs. Method: Seventy-three students from 46 randomly selected university programs in the United States completed an online survey including explicit statements regarding the validity of AAE and a matched-guide task assessing participants' implicit perceptions of AAE. Participants were randomly assigned to one of four audio pairings that differed in terms of the dialect spoken and the formality of the conversational context. Participants rated the speaker on 11 attributes (e.g., literate/illiterate, rich/poor) using the Revised Speech Dialect Attitudinal Scale. Results: Participants indicated positive opinions of statements on the validity of AAE. However, across three categories of personal attributes--sociointellectual, aesthetic, and dynamism--participants who heard the Mainstream American English recordings rated the speaker differently than recordings including AAE. Conclusions: Students in SLP programs express positive opinions regarding AAE, and yet, they rate speakers who speak AAE lower in personal attributes. The results highlight the importance of expanding training for future SLPs to include not only explicit statements about the value of AAE but also activities addressing implicit perceptions of dialect use. We provide a brief discussion of how the current data can be implemented for such an activity. Lesson plans and materials are provided as supplemental materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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Database:	Education Research Complete

Description
Abstract:	Purpose: Despite the increased awareness that all dialects are valid linguistic forms, perceptions of African American English (AAE) use are often negative in the general population. Students training for careers as speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are required to have coursework relating to cultural and linguistic diversity. However, little is known about the perceptions of AAE among students in SLP programs. Method: Seventy-three students from 46 randomly selected university programs in the United States completed an online survey including explicit statements regarding the validity of AAE and a matched-guide task assessing participants' implicit perceptions of AAE. Participants were randomly assigned to one of four audio pairings that differed in terms of the dialect spoken and the formality of the conversational context. Participants rated the speaker on 11 attributes (e.g., literate/illiterate, rich/poor) using the Revised Speech Dialect Attitudinal Scale. Results: Participants indicated positive opinions of statements on the validity of AAE. However, across three categories of personal attributes--sociointellectual, aesthetic, and dynamism--participants who heard the Mainstream American English recordings rated the speaker differently than recordings including AAE. Conclusions: Students in SLP programs express positive opinions regarding AAE, and yet, they rate speakers who speak AAE lower in personal attributes. The results highlight the importance of expanding training for future SLPs to include not only explicit statements about the value of AAE but also activities addressing implicit perceptions of dialect use. We provide a brief discussion of how the current data can be implemented for such an activity. Lesson plans and materials are provided as supplemental materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
ISSN:	10580360
DOI:	10.1044/2021_AJSLP-20-00339