Code-switching isn’t something that just black people do. Plenty of marginalized groups use code-switching as a way to communicate with others in their community. Just as a Spanish teacher will teach students how to speak Spanish understanding that their native language is English, it is important as a teacher to educate students about how to use English to navigate a complex world rather than trying to tip-toe around how they use their native language to talk to each other. You can teach them English skills to make them more proficient and still allow them to use AAVE when talking to each other.

Thanks for reading the piece and I hope this answered your question! I’m no expert on this topic, but I hope this was insightful.