Examining How SLPs Rate the Written Narratives of Black Second Graders: A Mixed Methods Study.

Area of Science:

• Linguistics
• Speech-Language Pathology
• Sociolinguistics

Background:

• Equitable service delivery in speech-language pathology is crucial for all individuals.
• Narrative assessments are considered culturally fair, but evaluation of diverse linguistic variations requires scrutiny.
• The emphasis on "standard" English in education impacts perceptions of student writing.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how speech-language pathologists (SLPs) perceive and evaluate written narratives from students using African American English (AAE) versus General American English (GAE).
• To examine potential race-based differences in SLP evaluations of student writing.
• To understand the qualitative rationale behind SLPs' ratings of written narratives.

Main Methods:

• A mixed-methods study involving 42 Black and White SLPs.
• SLPs rated fictional and personal written narratives from two second-grade Black students.
• Participants provided qualitative justifications for their numerical ratings.

Main Results:

• No significant race-based differences were found in SLP ratings.
• Fictional narratives received higher ratings than personal narratives.
• Narratives written in GAE were rated more favorably than those in AAE, with justifications focusing on grammar and conventions.

Conclusions:

• Findings suggest that language ideologies favoring GAE may influence SLP evaluations.
• SLPs' focus on microstructure (grammar, punctuation) over macrostructure (content) indicates a prioritization of "correctness."
• Further research is needed to address linguistic bias in clinical practice.