A description of young children’s use of Australian Aboriginal English dialect in a regional area

Abstract

Purpose Non-standard dialects, such as Australian Aboriginal English (AAE), are spoken across the globe, often by peoples from marginalised groups and communities. Speech-language pathologists in Australia need to be familiar with AAE in order to correctly and appropriately diagnose and intervene with Aboriginal clients. The purpose of this study was to identify the presence of AAE in the communication of pre-school-aged children in a regional area and to describe the features of AAE that these children used. Method Interactions between early childhood educators and children were videotaped for a sample of 21 Aboriginal and 21 non-Aboriginal children. From these videos specific features of AAE were coded and analysed using parametric and non-parametric tests. Result The communication of the sample of Aboriginal children differed significantly from that of the non-Aboriginal children. Several features of AAE were identified within this cohort, including: cluster reduction, zero use of /h/ and zero use of copula. Conclusion Differences in dialect exist in the communication of pre-school-aged children in regional areas of Australia. It is important for educators and health professionals to be aware of the features of AAE dialect so they can support Aboriginal children in their learning journey.