Language Diversity in the Classroom - ymerleksi - home

The Persistence of Linguistic Deficit 129might, after all, retain some validity. Tough (1982) argues here for astereotypically ‘deficit’ view of speech patterns in working-class homes, anargument she had made earlier (Tough, 1977) and which she continued tomake (Tough, 1985). Another contributor also muddied the picture byclaiming that disadvantaged children do have deficits, which are notlinguistic but are rather deficiencies of knowledge; these lead, then, tosmaller vocabularies (Snow, 1982). While at first blush it would seem thatmatters of vocabulary are matters of language, it is apparent on reflectionthat the size and shape of a group’s vocabulary are best understood asproducts of environmental exigency. And this brings us back to differencerather than deficit. After all, there are many human groups who lack theterminology of higher mathematics, who have no word for ‘laser’; andwhat does this prove about any innate cognitive deficiency?Overall, the argument that I made in the second edition of a bookabout language and disadvantage (Edwards, 1989, see also Edwards2006) and complementary suggestions made by Crowley (2003) in thesecond edition of his book on standard language seem justified. Varioustypes of ‘deficit’ models continue to have adherents, both within andwithout the educational world. There are ‘important continuities with thethinking of the past, including the repetition of many of the same pointsof confusion and difficulty’ (Crowley, 2003: 231). In similar fashion,Wolfram (1998a) recently acknowledged that ‘entrenched myths aboutlanguage inadequacy are like a jack-in-the-box that keeps springing backup’; he goes on to say thatthe exposure of one line of reasoning as objectively unjustified andillogical doesn’t mean that linguistic equality will be attained. If thebottom-line belief is that one cultural group and by extension itslanguage is inferior to another, then another line of reasoning willsimply replace the old one. (Wolfram, 1998a: 105)Perhaps there is something inherent in the nature of socially stratifiedsocieties that will always find a way to translate cultural difference intodeficiency. But even if this rather gloomy assessment is correct even ifwe can only hope to scotch the snake, not kill it we should makewhatever assaults we can on inaccurate and prejudiced interpretations.The Honey affairIn Britain, some of the continuing controversy has been stimulated bythe work of John Honey. It is worth considering here, not only because ofthe prominence it achieved, but also because it represents so well the