October 13, 2008

Why must my kid read a slang-y book?

Ron Fletcher, an English teacher at Boston College High School, regularly chats with readers on Boston.com. These questions are from a recent chat:

Question: Hello, Ron. My son, a freshman at a prestigious local high school is reading a story for his English class that is written entirely in a slang-y dialect. This hardly seems appropriate for a college preparatory school curriculum. Shouldn't we be teaching our students proper grammar, not giving them examples of poor grammar?

Ron Fletcher: Resist the temptation to judge too soon. The story you describe may be the perfect in for a meaningful discussion of grammar. Sometimes, a counter-example is more effective and teachable than text-book prose. I'm guessing that that's the case here.

Question: Do you think that applications to the state schools are going to be much higher due to the economy and therefore they will be able to be more selective than in the past?

Ron Fletcher: Absolutely! Many students will have to reconsider the meaning of a "safety." In addition to the economic woes, we have the largest class of seniors in recent history. More, many state schools have been improving their academic status and growing more competitive each year. Have your son or daughter meet with a counselor to get an accurate lay of the land. Good luck.

Agree with Ron Fletcher's advice? Have some of your own? Let us know in our comments section below.

Posted by: David Beard, Boston.com Staff at 07:38 AM | Link | Comments (6) | Email
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6 comments so far...

  1. Is the son reading "Trainspotting?", "A Clockwork Orange?", or "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn?" All literature isn't written in the King's English.

    Posted by Liz October 13, 08 01:24 PM

  1. I'm so curious about the question about the book written in "slang-y dialect" being inappropriate. I would love to know what book we're talking about here and what, really, is the point of this question. There are many MANY works that are considered "important literature" that are written in "slang-y dialect"--Shakespeare, Dickens, Joyce, and Mark Twain come to mind, for example--would a parent question the inclusion of those books in the curriculum of their prestigious high school?

    Posted by hot-tomato October 13, 08 01:26 PM

  1. I was just thinking the same thing about Junie B Jones... At first I was worried about my 5 yr old reading these books because they depict a young child who doesn't speak properly. But it has turned out to be a wonderful opportunity to talk about grammar and why it's important and also why it is sometimes more effective as a writing tool to break a grammatical rule--so long as you learn the rule first.

    I also happen to think a character's voice is far more critical than rules if a story is to come alive. If every character spoke "perfectly" reading would be a very dull prospect indeed.

    Posted by Margie October 13, 08 02:13 PM

  1. This is a valid question. Much of so-called "ghetto literature" is not even literature at all but is merely dialogue copied down on paper.

    Matt

    Posted by Matt October 13, 08 03:17 PM

  1. It's called multi-culturalism. You should embrace it. It's good.

    Posted by C October 13, 08 07:37 PM

  1. When you say, "All literature isn't written in the King's English," that's not true. Of course, some literature is written in the King's English.

    You probably mean, "Not all literature is written in King's English."

    It's like saying that all cookies aren't chocolate chip. That's wrong. Chocolate chip cookies certainly are. You mean to say, not all cookies are chocolate chip.

    Posted by Abe October 13, 08 08:22 PM
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Lylah M. Alphonse is a member of the Boston Globe Magazine staff and mom and stepmom to five kids ranging in age from toddler to teen. In addition to writing for Child Caring, she also writes about juggling a full-time career and parenthood at The 36-Hour Day, and about everything else at Write. Edit. Repeat. When she's not glued to the computer or solving a kid-related crisis, she's in the kitchen or, occasionally, asleep.
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