The Ebonics Controversy

The term Ebonics, coined by the author in 1973 at a conference on the language of Black children, was formed by combining ebony (black) and phonics (speech sounds). Two schools of thought on the origin of Ebonics are presented: (a) pidgin/Creole and (b) African retention. What sparked the national controversy on Ebonics was the Oakland school board's decision to recognize Ebonics as a legitimate language. The school board's primary goal is to discover more effective ways to improve African American children's acquisition of Standard English and reading skills. Three research studies are presented to support the use of Ebonics in the classroom as a bridge to Standard English. Many African American children speak Ebonics or a home language. Using the language children bring to school as a bridge to teaching new language systems is a widely used technique in second language acquisition.