Phonological Features Exhibited by Children Speaking African American English at Three Grade Levels

Abstract

This study compared phonological features of African American English speakers at 3 grade levels: preschool, elementary school, and middle school. The phonological features exhibited at all 3 grade levels were quite similar. The frequency of usage, determined by the percentage of speakers exhibiting the feature and by the mean number of occurrences of the feature, varied. The frequency of occurrence of some features decreased as grade level increased, the frequency of others remained the same, and the frequency of others was quite variable at the different grade levels. We noted 1 unusual feature (bazin for bathing ) among several younger speakers.