Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Jamaican Creole'

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2003.
Title from first page of PDF file. Document formatted into pages; contains xxiv, 297 p. ; also includes graphics. Includes bibliographical references (p. 289-297).

In this dissertation, I trace academics' attitudes to writing and its instruction through the six-decade history of The University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona, in Jamaica. I establish that while the institution's general writing courses facilitate students' initiation into the academy, these courses reflect assumptions about writing and learning that need to be reassessed to yield versatile writers and disassociate the courses and writing from the alarmist rhetoric that often emerges in the media and in academe. In Jamaica, critics of university students' writing often promote what Mike Rose calls the "myth of transience" and perpetuate the "the rhetoric of transparent disciplinarity." According to the myth of transience, if writing is taught correctly at pre-university levels, students will not need writing instruction in the academy. The concept that I call "the rhetoric of transparent disciplinarity" is defined in the work of David Russell, who examines the view that writing is a single, mechanical, generalizable skill that is learned once and for all. Advocates of this view consider writing as a transparent recording of reality or completed thought that can be taught separate from disciplinary knowledge. Based on my analysis of archival materials and data gathered from questionnaires and interviews with past and current writing specialists, this view has been evident at the UWI, Mona, since the institution's earliest years. Academics there have perpetuated a certain tacit assumption that writing is a natural process. By recalling the country's history of education, I demonstrate how this assumption parallels colonial administrators' determination that Jamaican Creole speakers should naturally learn English to advance in society. I argue that if the university wants to widen participation while maintaining excellence, then academics should foster knowledge production (rather than only reproduction) by acknowledging the extent to which disciplines are rhetorically constructed through writing. If writing specialists and other content faculty draw on rhetoric's attention to audience, situation, and purpose, they can foster learning by helping students see how writing contributes to knowledge-making inside the academy and beyond. This study contributes to international discussions about how students learn to write and use writing in higher education.

This thesis considers the gender and cultural politics of selected Jamaican women's poetry published during the first half of the twentieth century and seeks to establish that an approach to this poetry sensitive to these issues will illuminate aspects of their work previously neglected by canonical and colonial modes of interpretation. The central interest of this thesis is the poetry of Una Marson, a black woman poet whose work has been critically neglected and devalued to date. My project is to read Marson's work in some detail, and to explore to what extent her poetry, which often works within colonial models and with conventional notions of feminine fulfilment, employs received aesthetic and ideological paradigms both strategically and subversively. In the belief that critics of Jamaican women's writing should be as attentive to the gender and cultural politics of their ways of reading, as of the texts they wish to read, the first chapter of this thesis engages in a sustained analysis of theoretical positions and attempts to map out the various problems and possibilities which critical discourses present in relation to this material. The second chapter examines the various social and literary contexts in which Jamaican poetry was produced and received during this period, and the third chapter looks in more detail at contemporary notions of aesthetic and cultural forms. The fourth and fifth chapters are structured aromd close textual readings which explore the variety and complexity of Marson's, and her Creole contemporaries', poetic engagement with the issues of cultural and gender identities. The thesis concludes that Marson's poetry questions dominant notions both of identity and of aesthetics, and consequently that her poetry offers an example of Jamaican literary expression which moves beyond the nationalization of consciousness which has come to mark the literary achievement of this period.

Thesis (M.A.)--Georgia State University, 2008.
Title from file title page. Mary Zeigler, committee chair; Marti Singer, Lynée Gaillet, committee members. Electronic text (113 [i.e. 112] p.) : digital, PDF file. Description based on contents viewed Oct. 1, 2008. Includes bibliographical references (p. 105-110).

This descriptive research paper looks at English teaching in Jamaica, and examines what perceptions upper secondary school teachers have of the teaching mission, the teacher role and the responsibility that comes with the teacher profession. The paper also examines the teachers’ attitudes towards Jamaican Creole and Standard Jamaican English and the relation between these two languages. The paper discusses inequality connected to language diversity in Jamaica and aims to explore attitudes, language ideologies and educational policies, in relation to English teaching in a Jamaican Creole speaking classroom.The study was carried out with a qualitative approach where semi-structured interviews were conducted with five teachers at three public upper secondary schools in Jamaica. The collected data was analyzed with an explorative approach.The main conclusion drawn from this study is that English teaching in a Jamaican Creole speaking classroom is affected by a number of factors. Firstly, the teachers expressed an ambivalence opinion about what language is or should be the first and second language. Secondly, teaching English in Jamaica is difficult due to the absence of a standardized written form of the students’ vernacular. Lastly, the teacher role is not limited to teach a first or second language, the teachers’ role is extended to include a great responsibility for the students’ future life

Educational Leadership
Ed.D.
This case study explored students’ perception about their performance in CSEC English A at three evening schools in Savanna La Mar. While conducting the research I used ethnographic methods, including interviews, observations and document analysis to better understand students’ perceptions of their performance in CSEC English A. The central questions which guided the research are “how do students at three evening schools in Savanna La Mar perceive their performance in CSEC English A and what factors affect those perceptions, and what strategies do students think can improve their performance in English?” Creswell’s (2008) steps for analyzing qualitative data were used to explore the central research questions. The discussion sought to highlight how students perceived their academic performance in CSEC English A and what attributed for these perceptions. These views were examined using four themes: student factors that influence student learning outcome, influence of Jamaican Creole (JC) on learning Standard Jamaican English (SJE), teacher traits that influence learning and structure and operations of the evening schools. The Attribution and Expectancy Value Theories were used to make meaning of the data. The findings revealed that most of the students exhibited high self-concept and expressed that they would be successful in the upcoming CSEC English A Examination despite previous challenges they experienced with SJE. They attributed this success to the strategies they were using and the encouragement and positive feedback they got from their teachers. However, some students cited several factors which have negatively affected their performance such as the predominant use of JC in the home, school and community. Although the research was a multiple site study, it was limited to one geographical location which delimited the generalizability of the study. However, the insights gained can contribute to and fill gaps in the literature and also enlighten educators and other stakeholders of students’ perception about their performance in CSEC English A.
Temple University--Theses

This study shows how the different ways of expressing the progressive in Jamaican Creole,using the three aspect markers a, de and gwain, differ from each other. It is a corpus study thatshows that these three particles that are used have different other functions and meanings. Itbriefly explains the history and grammar of the creole language along with what previousstudies state about the three aspect markers that are subject for this analysis.The aim of this study is to indicate that creole languages do not necessarily have tobe less complex, just because they are different from their original language. Each aspectmarker and its different functions are analyzed and compared to each other, as well ascontrasted with English, in order to see how and in what ways they differ.The results of the study show that there is a tendency towards a being morefrequently used as the progressive marker nowadays, but de used to be the most frequent one.Gwain has no other function apart from marking the progressive. These particles haveundergone a grammatical change through time. There does not seem to be any clear rules forin which contexts these markers should be used. The study concludes that Jamaican Creoledoes not seem to have a less complex way of expressing things, at least not the progressive,rather the opposite.

Food – its organization and consumption–offers a unique lens through which to understand the early workings of English colonialism, as well as national, bodily identity. In the seventeenth century English intellectuals sought to understand and prescribe national identity on a bodily level. However in the early stages of colonialism this same process was taking place across the Atlantic, in Jamaica, an island that supported a significantly different demographic makeup. Through the use of physicians’ casebooks, prescriptions and natural histories, buttressed with the words of English travelers, this paper argues that due to the efforts to encourage and define English bodily identity there was a simultaneous demarcation of an emerging Creole population. This Creole population was defined by what they were able to consume- particularly dishes such as turtle meat and chocolate.

Orientador : Prof. Dr. Clarissa Menezes Jordão
Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Federal do Paraná, Setor de Ciências Humanas, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Letras. Defesa: Curitiba, 22/06/2017
Inclui referências : f.187-195
Resumo: Jamaica, uma das Antilhas Maiores do Caribe, compartilha com outras ilhas da região uma história de colonização, imigração e encontro de culturas que tem resultado na criação de uma cultura diversa e uma língua crioula. Como fenômeno integrador de cultura e história na sociedade, o crioulo jamaicano gera interesses múltiplos, segundo mostram a diversidade de estudos sobre essa língua e as diferentes questões de pesquisa em campos acadêmicos diversos, incluindo a linguística, a educação, a sociologia, a filosofia, entre outros. Seguindo um método cartográfico apoiado com o fundamento teórico da uma análise rizomática (Deleuze e GUATTARI, 1978), a tese apresenta um estudo panorâmico sobre o crioulo jamaicano, visando encontrar pontos de encontro entre a visão rizomática proposta para entender o desenvolvimento da língua jamaicana e os dados gerados a partir de entrevistas com os professores participantes. A tese discute aspectos diversos relacionados com a língua crioula jamaicana e apresenta uma interpretação de narrativas baseada nas percepções e concepções de língua prevalentes entre professores de espanhol como língua estrangeira na ilha. Estes professores compartilham com a autora interesses profissionais, especificamente por serem professores de línguas, o que aporta uma perspectiva diferente, dado que, ao considerar os assuntos das línguas, tanto os participantes quanto a autora estão incluindo pontos de vista que incluem a língua como um produto sociohistórico de amplo uso social e a língua como objeto de ensino. As narrativas interpretadas, portanto, incluem as experiências e ângulos pessoais de professores falantes nativos do crioulo jamaicano que têm informação de primeira mão sobre a realidade social dessa língua e sobre o seu impacto sobre a língua estrangeira que eles ensinam (espanhol). Consequentemente, a pesquisa sobre as narrativas compartilhadas e pessoais dos professores participantes mostra visões nascidas das experiências profissionais como professores de língua, e das suas próprias vidas dentro do contexto jamaicano. Conduzido entre professores jamaicanos que trabalham no contexto de educação secundária na Jamaica, o estudo conduz à interpretação de que esses participantes compartilham narrativas que têm a ver com a sua vida profissional e social, segundo há sido inferido de observações nas escolas, dos seus critérios e ideias nas entrevistas e conversas. Igualmente, a tese apresenta uma interpretação dos pontos de encontro entre as narrativas dos participantes com aquelas encontradas em publicações da mídia, as redes sociais, e conversas com pessoas proeminentes da sociedade jamaicana. O fato de não ser falante do crioulo jamaicano colocou à pesquisadora no papel de "outsider". No entanto, esse papel contribuiu para enriquecer o processo devido à experiência profissional e pessoal da autora como professora de espanhol e moradora da Jamaica há mais de 20 anos. Essa informação e vivências tem contribuído no desenvolvimento da própria narrativa da autora e conformaram uma outra perspectiva possível para interpretar o rico contexto jamaicano e as suas contradições lógicas. Palavras-chave: Crioulo. Rizoma. Crioulização. Descrioulização. Transcrioulização. Ensino. Espanhol. Jamaica. Narrativa. Percepções. Concepções de Língua. Cartografia
Abstract: Jamaica, one of the largest islands in the Caribbean, shares a history of colonization, immigration and culture convergence with other islands in the region, which has resulted in the creation of a diverse culture and a Creole language. As a phenomenon of sociocultural and sociohistorical integration, Jamaican Creole generates multiple interests; as shown by the diversity of language studies and the various research interests in several academic fields, including Linguistics, Education, Sociology, Philosophy, among others. Based on a cartographic approach, as proposed in DELEUZE & GUATTARI (1978) the thesis discusses various aspects pertaining to the language situation in Jamaica, especially the matter of Jamaican Creole, and presents an interpretation of narratives based on the language perceptions and conceptions prevailing amongst teachers of Spanish as a foreign language in the island. The thesis presents a discussion on various aspects pertaining to Jamaican Creole and an interpretation of participant's narratives about such situation, based on a study of the most prevalent language conceptions and perceptions found in this particular group composed of Jamaican Creole speakers involved in the teaching of Spanish in the island. The participating teachers and the author share common professional interests due to the fact that, being language teachers, they bring forth a different perspective to the discussion and analysis of language matters, particularly in connection with the socio-historical nature of languages and their use in education. The narratives interpreted, therefore, include the experiences and personal angles of teachers, who are native speakers of Jamaican Creole and who also have first-hand information about the social reality of that language, as well as its impact on the foreign language they teach (Spanish). Consequently, the research delved on the shared and personal narratives of language professionals, as views emerging from their personal and professional experiences within the context of Jamaica. After presenting a panoramic study of the language situation in Jamaica, based on a rhizomatic view of language development, the thesis discusses the data generated from interviews and unstructured conversations with Secondary Education Spanish teachers, most of whom are operating within a sociolinguistic context characterized by the presence of two languages: English (the official language of education) and Creole (the popular language). The study leads to the interpretation that these participants share narratives that involve their professional and social lives, as inferred from observations at their work spaces, their criteria and the ideas presented during interviews and conversations. Furthermore, the thesis presents an interpretation of connecting points between participant's narratives and those found in media publications, social network debates, and conversations with prominent Jamaicans. The fact of not being a Jamaican Creole speaker puts the researcher in a role of an "outsider". However, such role contributed to enrich the process due to the professional and personal experience of the author as a Spanish teacher and resident of Jamaica for more than 20 years. The sharing of information and experiences have contributed in the development of her own narrative and has brought forth yet another perspective to interpret the rich and multiple Jamaican context and its logical contradictions. Keywords: Creole. Rhizome. Creolization. Decreolization. Transcreolization. Teaching. Spanish. Jamaica. Narrative. Perceptions. Conceptions of language. Cartography
Resumen: Jamaica, una Antillas Mayores, comparte con otras islas del Caribe una historia de colonización, inmigración y encuentro de culturas que ha dado lugar a la creación de una cultura diversa y una lengua criolla. Como fenómeno integrador de cultura e historia en la sociedad, el criollo jamaicano genera múltiples intereses, según muestra la diversidad de estudios sobre el lenguaje y los distintos problemas de investigación en varios campos académicos, incluyendo la educación, la sociología, la lingüística, la filosofía, entre otros. Siguiendo un método cartográfico, basado en el fundamento teórico que ofrece el análisis rizomático (DELEUZE y GUATTARI, 1978), la tesis presenta un estudio panorámico sobre el criollo jamaicano, que tiene por objetivo encontrar y analizar puntos comunes entre la visión rizomática que se propone, para analizar el desarrollo del lenguaje jamaiquino, y los datos generados a partir de entrevistas con los profesores participantes. La tesis analiza diversos aspectos relacionados con la lengua criolla de Jamaica y presenta una interpretación de narrativas, en base a algunas percepciones y concepciones de lenguaje que existen entre los profesores de español participantes. Estos docentes comparten intereses profesionales con la autora, específicamente por el hecho de ser profesores de lenguas extranjeras. Tal hecho genera una perspectiva diferente, dado que, tanto los participantes como la autora aportan puntos de vistas que consideran aspectos del lenguaje como un producto sociohistórico de amplio uso social, incluyendo la educación. Las narrativas interpretadas, por tanto, incluyen experiencias y ángulos personales de profesores que son hablantes de criollo jamaicano, por lo que tienen información de primera mano sobre la realidad social de ese idioma y su impacto en la lengua extranjera que imparten (español). En consecuencia, la investigación sobre narrativas compartidas y personales de los profesores participantes muestra visiones relacionadas con las experiencias profesionales y de vivencia de los participantes dentro del contexto jamaicano. Sus experiencias y puntos de vista han conducido a una interpretación de narrativas, apoyada no solamente en los criterios e ideas presentados en las entrevistas, sino también en observaciones cartográficas del entorne característicos de sus escuelas. Al mismo tiempo, la tesis presenta una interpretación de los puntos de encuentro entre las narrativas de los participantes y las emergentes de publicaciones de los medios, redes sociales y conversaciones con personalidades de la sociedad jamaicana. El hecho de no ser hablante de criollo jamaicano puso a la autora en un rol de "outsider". Sin embargo, esa función contribuyó a enriquecer el proceso debido a su experiencia personal y profesional como profesora de español y residente de Jamaica durante más de 20 años. Esta información y experiencia ha contribuido en el desarrollo de su propia narrativa, a la vez que aporta otra perspectiva posible para interpretar el rico y múltiple contexto jamaicano y sus contradicciones lógicas. Palabras clave: Criollo. Rizoma. Criollización. Descriollización. Transcriollización. Enseñanza. Español. Jamaica. Narrativa. Percepciones. Concepciones de lenguaje. Cartografía.
Di Driff: Jamaica a wanna di biggess ailan inna di Caribbean an dem an di adda ailan dem inna di region ave di same istry a colonization an immigration, an dem copy tings from deh wanna nedda. A succum dem kultcha become suh mix up mix up, an a it mek dem ave patwa as a langwidge. Patwa great inna most people eye wen yuh considda di social an cultural fakta plus di social an istorical side a tings as well. Everybody interestid inna Patwa an yuh cyan si dat because a nuff study dem duh pan it, people weh interestid inna langwidge, Education, peeple weh study society, knowlidge an life an nuff more tings, study patwa. DELEUZE & GUATTARI (1978) suggess wan way fi duh research weh name cartography, i basically mean seh yaahgo map tings out, a it deh study yah use fi pree di langwidge situation inna Jamaica, exprecially Patwa, an di study explain certain tings base pa'how di Jamaican teecha dem weh teech Spanish feel bout Patwa. Deh study yah discuss wol heep a tings bout Patwa an it show yuh a meds bout how di participants dem feel bout it, an di study show yuh dem ting yah base pan di most common feelins weh dis particular group have wen i come to Patwa. An yuh dun know seh is a group a Jamaican Patwa-tawking teecha weh teech Spanish rait a yaad yah. Di teecha dem an di summady weh duh deh study yah have nuff tings in common wen yaah talk bout dem job because di wol a dem a teecha an dat a lone mean she dem kinda bring a different meds to di wol langwidge ting, exprecially if yaah tawk bout di social and history side a langwidge and how yuh use dem wen yaah deal wid tings fi duh wid education. From yuh hear dat yuh dun know seh anyting wi tell yuh, wi tell yuh base offa weh di teecha dem seh base pan dem own experience and feelins bout di matta. Plus, yuh know seh dem a Jamaican teecha weh tawk patwa from dem baan suh dem know firs han how peeple really treat pawta, plus dem know how it affeck tings wen dem a teech wan foreign langwidge like Spanish. Aarait, suh, di study use weh di teecha dem seh (buot weh di wol a dem agree pan an weh each a dem seh fi demself) fi get to di meet a di matta. After wi lay out everyting clear clear bout di langwidge situation inna Jamaica, base offa wan view weh dem use fi study how langwidge cum about weh dem call rhizomatic, weh mean seh langwidge can develop from different roots an levels, deh study yah discuss di response dem weh wi get from di interview dem an di conversation dem weh wi ave wid di teecha dem weh teech Spanish inna di high school dem. Most a dem deh teecha deh come from wan settings weh a two langwidge di people dem tawk, wan a Inglish, di wan weh dem use inna di skool dem, and di adda wan a Patwa, di wan weh almost all a people dem tawk. Di study lead up to wan andastandin seh di wol a di participant dem have similar experience, buot inna dem workplace an inna dem home an community surroundin, an wi realize dis base offa weh dem seh inna di interview dem an wen wi tawk to dem. Not ongle dat, but di study lead to wan andastandin of how weh di participants dem seh conneck wid weh dem always seh pan tv, an pan social media an weh sum a di big shot people dem always seh. Di fack seh di person weh a duh deh study ere nuh tawk Patwa mean seh yuh can basically call di person wan "outsaida". But di fack seh di person a wan outsaida add supm to di wol experience because of di professional an personal experience weh di person ave, because shi teech Spanish inna Jamaica an live deh fi ova 20 years. Because shi share infamation an experience wid di participants dem shi andastan di wol Pawta ting even betta now an can explain di nitty gritty a it much betta. Key word dem: Patwa. Rhizome. Creolization. Decreolization. Transcreolization. Teaching. Spanish. Jamaica. Di way people si tings. Feelins bout tings. How peeple si di langwidge. Mappin Out

In this study, titled Learning in a language that isn't one's own - the case of Jamaica, our intention is to give a picture of what the language situation in Jamaica is like. English is the official language in Jamaica, but it is coexisting with Jamacian Creole, which is not admitted as a official language, but it is the language of the people. In this study we try to point out possible factors that have created the language situation of Jamaica. We have mostly focused on the situation at school, all teaching is supposed to be in English. We have observed attitudes among pupils and teachers to English and Jamaican Creole. We will also give general explanations of the terms Pidgin and Creole and we will give a brief history background of Jamaica.

As the argument of this thesis deals with the polarities of language usage in Jamaica, Part One presents the historical context in which a language 'continuum' came to exist in the society. Then it analyses the systemic contrasts between Jamaican Creole (JC) and Standard English (SE), and the language varieties between these two polar lects. A case history of Elementary/Primary schools in the late nineteenth and early twentieth._ centuries drew attention to the Creole-Standard debate. Educational administrators misunderstood the nature of the linguistic configuration - denying pupils' Creole the right to exist - while teachers were singularly ill-equipped to help boys and girls acquire English. Part Two deals with the empirical investigation which centres on a substantially representative sample of 530 Secondary pupils. The study seeks to determine the extent to which the Secondary sector, which is designed for the masses, can achieve two divergent linguistic goals laid down by the Ministry of Education - 'appreciation of Creole' and 'a high level of competence in English'. The study probes in some depth the concept of 'linguistic focusing' as it seeks to assess pupils' access to English through the printed word and the media. Then it closely analyses their perspectives on language use and attitudes to both languages. Finally, the assessment of two written tasks provides evidence of pupils' productive abilities in English. The data clearly reveal that they have not acquired English, even after eight years of exposure to formal teaching. Indeed, the majority leave school with negative attitudes to JC and a legacy of linguistic insecurities. The thesis concludes on a hopeful note, however, as it suggests how a new political will, the insights of linguistic scholarship and new vistas in teacher education could combine to resolve the Creole-Standard debate.

Les réflexions des chercheurs en didactique de l'anglais ont contribué à l'avancement des notions de la langue-culture (Cain, 1981, 1984) et à la compréhension de l'enseignement de l'anglais dans un environnement créolophone (Alleyne 1971, 1980, 1989 ; Craig, 1990, 2000 ; Devonish, 1986, 2004 ; Pollard, 1998, 2003). Bien qu'aujourd'hui, la valeur culturelle du créole jamaïquain soit largement reconnue, peu de recherches ont toutefois, abordé la question des représentations des enseignants sur l'interaction entre les deux langues. Cette thèse étudie les univers de croyance et les représentations sociales des enseignants jamaïquains sur leur prise en charge des défis provoqués par les réalités sociolinguistiques de l'île. Les enseignants sont des conteurs (Connelly & Clandinin, 1990) et ils utilisent naturellement une structure narrative pour parler de leur vie professionnelle (Raymond Butt, McCue, & Yanagishi, 1992). J'ai donc opté pour une analyse de 30 heures de récit de pratique professionnelle d'enseignants. Les récits sont prélevés auprès de 10 sujets via MSN Messenger. L'objectif étant d'appréhender les croyances des enseignants du primaire en matière d'alternance codique entre créole et anglais et d'interculturalité en classe.L'angle méthodologique emprunté pour cette thèse est inspiré de la perspective ethnobiographique de Jean Poirier, Sylvie Clapier-Valladon et Paul Raybaut. Les dix récits sont tout d'abord soumis à une analyse sociolinguistique à l'aide de techniques d'analyse thématique, prenant en compte la théorie structurelle de la représentation sociale d'Abric et Flament. Les thèmes ainsi identifiés et analysés sont soumis à une analyse de discours inspirée de la théorie des opérations énonciatives d'Antoine Culioli. Les conclusions sont nuancées à l'aide des données secondaires en provenance de 100 questionnaires administrés à un échantillon d'enseignants jamaïquains et d'une analyse de six textes officiels. L'analyse croisée de ces données vise à assurer la fiabilité et la validité des résultats
Reflections of language education researchers have contributed largely to the advancement of the notions of language and culture (Cain, 1981, 1984) and the teaching of English in a Creolespeaking environment (Alleyne 1971, 1980, 1989; Craig, 1990, 2000; Devonish, 1986, 2004; Pollard, 1998, 2003). Today the cultural value of the Jamaican Creole is widely recognized, little research has, however, addressed the teacher representations on this issue. This thesis investigates the belief systems and social representation of Jamaican primary school teachers relative to their handling of the challenges brought on by the sociolinguistic realities of the island. Teachers naturally appropriate a narrative structure to talk about their professional lives (Butt Raymond, McCue, & Yanagishi, 1992). Indeed, teachers, even more so than the rest of us, are storytellers who lead storied lives (Connelly & Clandinin, 1990). I have therefore opted for an analysis of 30 hours of teacher narrative collected from 10 subjects via MSN messenger, with the objective of investigating beliefs and cultural identification with regards to Creole, English, code-switching and interculture in the Jamaican classroom at the primary level. The general methodological angle for the PHD is inspired by the ethno biographical perspective of Jean Poirier, Sylvie Clapier-Valladon and Paul Raybaut.The narratives are analyzed first from a sociolinguistic standpoint using thematic analysis techniques, specifically taking into account Abric and Flament's structural theory of social representations. The themes thus identified and analyzed are subjected to discourse analysis inspired by Antoine Culioli's theory of enonciative operations. The findings are then futher explored with the help of 100 questionnaires from Jamaican teachers and 6 official texts. This additional data provides a wider internal and external framework which ensures reliability and validity to the findings

The essay represents the projector principle, on which, as the essay’s author believes, the narration of The Summer Lightning and Other Stories by Olive Senior is based. The projector principle illustrates the idea that little details and images in the text serve big purposes, for example, reflect the emotional state of the characters or how the characters construct their identity. The literary analysis of the present essay aims at exploring a complicated identity construction in the context of Jamaica with its half-lost indigenous and half-remained colonial legacies through the identity construction of adolescent Jamaican protagonists of the short stories.

Thesis (M.Ed.)--York University, 2004. Graduate Programme in Education.
Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 88-93). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/yorku/fullcit?pMQ99394

In this report, I discuss the re-contextualization of a working-class Jamaican speaker’s discourse in the media and the new meanings his speech acquires in the process. The series of re-contextualizations starts out with an interview on Jamaican television, which is in turn remixed into an electronic dance song and accompanying music video. The song entextualizes individual stretches of the speaker’s original dis­course into readily identifiable quotes that turn into Jamaican slang items. In the process, linguistic disorderliness is foregrounded in the utterances in question while their propositional content is virtually erased. In a further instance of re-contextualization, the speaker encounters his by now entextualized utterances in an interview on Jamaican breakfast television and struggles to re-establish his originally intended framing of it. His success in the specific interaction is very limited, but viewers’ comments reveal that the interview does effect a change in the meta-linguistic discourse surrounding the incident. I analyze the data as a case in point of ‘speaky spoky,’ a Jamaican label for un­successful attempts to emulate foreign prestige accents, resulting in linguistic dis­orderliness. By considering aspects of performance, entextualization and the keying of different frames, I demonstrate the interactional work that goes into the construc­tion of speaky spoky as a label, as well as the ideological work that label is put to in turn and its political effects. Based on these observations, I argue that speaky spoky is best understood as a multivalent construct resource for sustaining and influencing lan­guage ideologies. Its interactional versatility renders its relationship to authenticity in the Jamaican speech community complicated and potentially ambiguous.
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Racial tensions in UK escalating to violent conflicts from early 50ʼs on, led to series of changes in British legislation. Migration was systematically restricted, and regulations of entry were becoming much more severe. Discrimination of Caribbean and Asian immigrants in labor market, housing and education was extensive. Every attempt to address racial discrimination on the level of legislation was inefficient and hardly enforceable. Case study presented is situated in this social-political context. It is focused on second generation of afro-Caribbean minority in 70ʼs and its reaction to expulsion from British society, denying British identity and its fight against oppression through music and especially through language used itself. Jamaican Creole and in British, most notably in London surroundings, on Creole based system of adaptations called London Jamaican became significant feature of ethnic identification of afro-Caribbean (black) adolescents. This feature was used in conversations almost always through phenomenon of code-switching, where Creole features used were linked to attempt to define the speaker against dominant white society and oppressive system. Using of the features was often purposeful, because second generation of migrants was fully competent in using standard British English....