Caribbean Cadence
Many of the languages spoken in the Caribbean Islands are deemed to be "broken English" but they truly are a distinct creation. Those who speak Caribbean languages, which are called Patois or Creole, speak a language that consists of an amalgamation between European English, Spanish, French, Dutch and African languages. Depending upon the colonizing European group, the language spoken by the African-Caribbean was influenced by the colonizer's languages. There is a definite and complex relationship between history, language, and social class on the influence of language in the Caribbean Islands. Again, we must refer to the discussion of dialect and its roots - vocal nuances, accents, and vocabularies to support and enhance the discourse.
Patois is the most striking and dominant language spoken by the Islanders; it is the language of Jamaica. Patois has also been found to have no representation of past tense. This therefore confuses translations often occurring in conversation. 11 However, despite age, education, and social status of its speakers, Patois serves as a national vernacular shared across social boundaries and as a resource and locus for identity for many Caribbean Islanders living in America. There is a prevailing prestige norm to speak English and not Patois as it is noted to be socially undesirable in an urban context.
Assuredly, many urban teachers can attest to this when considering parent-teacher conference night: many parents speak the dialect of the Islands, while their students speak the language of conformity (the language of their peers which most would not call Standard English). For this and other reasons, Patois and Creole will be approached and heard throughout the exploration of this unit for their fundamentally rhythmic nature, their interconnecting of languages, and its notable cadence.
It has been revealed in the study of linguistics in the islands that "English" is preferred for general public communication, mass media news reporting, classrooms, and in business. However, code switching in these communities is greatly appreciated in many of these settings too. There is an enormous history lesson that can accompany this segment of the unit; teachers can trace language patterns, word associations and language absorptions from several African countries to the various islands of the Caribbean. The lesson can be designed as an I-Search for students in all grades and subjects. Students can research several points, such as: What territories make up the Caribbean Islands? Who were the first people in the Islands? What happened to the languages of Africans in the Caribbean? How important is history and social development in defining a language? Who were the conquering groups? Why did they come to the Islands to conquer the land? Also, students can trace word associations to Africa and other countries of occupying people's origin.
Students will be assigned to read for voice several poems written by Caribbean authors. The poets chosen for the unit are all from different regions/islands. They are: Louise Bennett, Derek Walcott, Claude McKay, Sam Selvon, and Grace Nichols, to name a few.
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