Speech & Hearing Sciences

Phonological differences between the adult model of Black English (BE) and that of standard English (SE) have been well documented (Dillard, 1972; Labov, 1972; and Wolfram & Fasold, 1974). However, very little has been reported regarding phonological development in Black English speakers. Although speech-language pathology is sensitive to the importance of distinguishing dialectal differences from language disorders, there are very few published guidelines for making a distinction between dialectal difference and phonological processing disorder in the emerging phonology of young Black children. A clinician must compare the phonology of children who use Black English either to the adult model of Black English, or to norms reported for Standard English. Neither comparison seems appropriate for developmental phonological assessment purposes (Haynes & Moran, 1989).