Katie Mansfield

Cognitive Load and Style Control: Examining the Role of Non-Standard Dialect Usage in Working-Class Children’s Educational Outcomes

This poster presentation will outline the research project I am currently undertaking, which seeks to explore the cognitive dimension of working-class children’s linguistic variation and its impact on their educational attainment. Employing an experimental methodology, including a dual-task speech-based experiment and a new state-of-the-art game builder tool, my project will investigate whether working-class primary school children are placed under increased and inequitable cognitive load because of the National Curriculum requirement that they use a language style which is less routine for them. Previous research has attempted to understand the multiple factors affecting working-class children’s educational outcomes, identifying external factors such as material deprivation, cultural deprivation and parental attitudes and support, and internal factors such as ability grouping and pupils’ relationships with their teachers (see e.g. Laureau, 2003; Reay, 2009; Law et al, 2011). More recently, there has also been research linking children’s language use to poor educational attainment (see e.g. Spencer et al, 2017). This research, however, has largely focused on the relationship between socioeconomic status and language disorders/delay, with very few studies examining the potential mediating role of dialect variation in this relationship. My research project will address this research gap, examining the cognitive implications of a discontinuity between the language practices of children’s homes and those necessary for success in school and how this affects working-class children’s educational attainment.