[Teachers] should recognize that the linguistic form a student brings to school is intimately connected with loved one’s community, and personal identity. To suggest that this form is “wrong” or, even worse, ignorant, is to suggest that something is wrong with the student and his or her family. (p.33)
I believe that this quote describes how a teacher is supposed to view and understand their students' languages and the back stories behind how they developed them. If a teacher insults the way a student speaks, they are directly offending and insulting that person, their family, their community, the way they grew up, and so on. All people have a different story about how they became the person they are now, and it is vital as a teacher to understand and accept that. To put your student down and call them ignorant for something that they cannot have controlled is one of the worst things you can do. Just because you did not grow up and develop your language in the same way does not mean that you should put others down for theirs. Even if I do not grow up and choose an educator as my career, I hope that I am able to further develop my skill in fully understanding people and the way they speak. I have found that it is hard to not judge someone right away just because they act or speak differently than you, but reading Delpit's quote and talking about it furthur in class has really brought it to my attention. Someone's language is a representation of themselves and how they grew up, and it is not my place to judge. I completely agree with what she wrote and hope to see more teachers take her words into consideration.
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