User:Alisondoepker/Evaluate an Article

Which article are you evaluating?
Appalachian English

Why you have chosen this article to evaluate?
I chose this article to evaluate because it pertains to the state I live in and the class that I am participating in as well. It is important to proofread this information because there might be students in similar classes who use Wikipedia as a source but it could have irrelevant or incorrect information. It is also good to stop stereotypes and biases, particularly with areas like Appalachia that already have harmful stereotypes and associations.

Evaluate the article
(Compose a detailed evaluation of the article here, considering each of the key aspects listed above. Consider the guiding questions, and check out the examples of what a useful Wikipedia article evaluation looks like.)

There is a paragraph (3rd paragraph) in the introduction that includes the biases and criticisms of Appalachian dialect. I found this to be distracting and questioned whether it was necessary because I feel as though it instills bias in the reader too, as I am unsure if the language is truly neutral. I am worried this would be some sort of an equity gap, because it invalidates the intelligence and status of those who speak with a similar dialect, regardless of their actual education level or knowledge. Also, I am unsure what a "real dialect" means in this context. The phonology section was well explained and stayed on topic. The use of examples was particularly helpful. I found the wording of the second paragraph in the grammar section to be confusing, but the section stayed on topic well. I feel like "a-verb-ing" did not necessarily need to be included in this article specifically, unless it is only a feature of Appalachian dialect, in which case it makes sense to be there. If it is included in other dialects, it might be useful to have a different article for that. The rest of the grammar section stayed on topic and provided good explanations and examples. I almost feel as though reiterating the controversy within the dialect is an overrepresentation of a point, because it feels like there is not a good way to address the stereotypes without instilling some form of bias. When speaking about their dialect, it seems biased to note that it is considered "uneducated" or "improper," because it starts to describe more than just a way of speaking, but the personal attitudes of others towards this way of speaking. It seems that in the Talk section, a lot of people are confused about the terminology listed, saying it is inaccurate. There was also some controversy in the correct pronunciation of the word "Appalachian," which I found to be very interesting. This article is rated C-Class on multiple projects.