"There’s nothing wrong with the way your grandparents talk,” my elementary school teachers used to say. “Standard English is different. Not better or worse. It’s just a way of talking that you need to know.”
Gary R. Howard has 35 years of experience working with issues of civil rights, social justice, equity, education and diversity. His most recent book, We Can't Teach What We Don't Know (Second Edition, 2006), was published by Columbia University and is considered a groundbreaking examination of privilege, power and the role of white leaders and educators in a multicultural society.