Hi again, Matt!
FT> ...dunno, but I don't think I could put it better than the HS student 
FT> from Oakland who said (in wonderful english): "if my teacher and I 
FT> don't understand each other learning doesn't occur". (before 
FT> congress)
 MS>     I notice the student did not have to talk in 
 MS> "Ebonics" to congressmen, probably because he knew it 
 MS> would not impress them _and_ because few of them would 
 MS> understand it if "Ebonics" was indeed a "foreign 
 MS> language" that they never studied.
I never said a student needed to talk in Ebonics or any other dialect.
I don't believe they should be encouraged to use it but if frustrated 
in younger years it would be far better to feel free to get a question 
out than sit mute out of frustration and shame.
 MS>     If this student (a vocational-school student, BTW) 
 MS> could speak and understand standard English in 
 MS> Washington in a congressional hearing, he can 
 MS> understand it and speak it back in his Oakland school.
There was an Alan Alda program on PBS last night -- _Scientific 
American Fronteers_ -- dealing with ther brain and how it learns.
Adrenaline apparently has a lot to do with remembering things profoundly.
There are few here who would stand and cheer at "drill and kill" -- 
learning by rote.  I think you'll find far more who appreciate more 
creative methods of inspiring discovery.
In the case of inner-city kids studying programming I don't think 
it would hurt to lighten the moment *occasionally* by saying something 
like raising a chips *CS & *WE means "Heads up dude! You be gettin' this".  
Sure, there are authoritarian types out there that can't lighten up 
and will praise "high discipline" all day.  ...there are a lot of kids 
falling through the cracks because they know the teacher can't relate 
to them too.  ...and it sure doesn't do anything to raise adrenaline.
...the special dealt with language learning as well.  Adults seem to 
hold certain language elements (like grammar rules) all in one part 
of the brain while young children clearly show brain activity all over 
the place before a native language is learned.
If young children are coming to school with Ebonics as a familiar base 
that is even "partially set" it would be far better to deal with it 
as a special ed situation rather than trying to jockey around it out 
of ignorance.  That just creates a stressful situation for the child 
that's likely to result in a resentment of the whole school experience 
for far too many.
In the medical profession -- have they recognized that a home 
environment setting for birthing is less stressful?  They sure have!
There is no reason that a school environment has to be totally foreign 
and hostile either.
If there is one iota of benefit in reaching the kids in a more
stimulating way (adrenaline), whether it be by changing delivery pitch,
style, or using a different technique occasionally to put them more at
ease I'd say it's certainly deserving of study. 
Besides not wanting to pay for it have you got any better ideas 
that haven't already been shown to be failing?
Best,
-frank:)
--- Maximus 2.01wb
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