Date Approved
4-13-2026
Graduate Degree Type
Project
Degree Name
Education (M.Ed.)
Degree Program
Education Leadership & Counseling
First Advisor
Dr. Laila McCloud
Academic Year
2025/2026
Abstract
African American Language (AAL) is a variety of English that is commonly used and linguistically respected, yet its application is barred from writing courses in higher education. Because AAL’s academic stigmatization negatively impacts the students who utilize AAL, it is important to discover how accepted usage influences students’ understanding of collegiate academic writing and their own identity. To engage with this complex problem, this project integrates Culturally Relevant Teaching and Black Linguistic Justice frameworks with the andragogical method of experiential learning to create a Supplemental Writing Skills college course. The purpose of this course is to explore how encouraged usage of AAL impacts students’ understanding of collegiate academic writing as well as students’ understanding and acceptance of their own identity.
ScholarWorks Citation
Shekanena, Leya, "English by any Other Variety" (2026). Culminating Experience Projects. 687.
https://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/gradprojects/687
