Code- meshing.  A term that has evolved throughout the last few years because of people and cultures.  A term that was formed based off of the original, code-switching.  Just how the term changed, language changes every day based on the influence of everything around us.  Code-meshing is becoming the new norm in today’s society and is being used more in what could be considered professional settings.  In NPRs article How Code Switching Explains the World, it states, “…we’re looking at code-switching a little more broadly: many of us subtly, reflexively change the way we express ourselves all the time. We’re hop-scotching between different cultural and linguistic spaces and different parts of our own identities — sometimes within a single interaction. The point is, code-switching is apparent in all the myriad ways we interact with one another and try to feel each other out” (Demby).  With code-meshing on the rise, the term brings up the question if it should be allowed to be used in the classroom or not and if so, how would it be graded.    

To define the word code- meshing, Vershawn Ashanti Young emphasis in his article Should Writers Use They Own English, “…code-meshing is the new code-switching: it’s multidialectalism and pluralingualism” (Young, 114).  It is the new language of the world and ultimately it brings itself into the schools.  Writing and English classes become a hot topic of discussion when code-meshing comes into play.  One could say that it is not Standard American English (SAE), which means there is no way to grade a paper.  According to Dictionary.com, Standard American English (SAE) is defined as “The form of the English language used in the United States in formal and professional speech and writing, as taught in schools and heard on newscasts, adhering to fixed norms of spelling, grammar, and usage in written and spoken contexts, and neutralizing nonstandard dialectal variation” (dictionary.com). To SAE standards, the grade would be a zero.  This brings up the question, what would a professor consider correct on a paper?

Thinking about how a professor would go about grading a paper in code-meshing can seem difficult. For example, independent clauses and indirect or direct objects are rules a student learns to further a student’s expertise in sentence writing.  It makes them have a stronger, more professional stance on a paper.  Yet, I’m sure whoever is reading this could not even define what these three grammatical terms mean and how to use them properly.  Stanley Fish writes in What Should Colleges Teach? Part 3, “…even if a beginning student were provided with the definition of a clause, the definition itself would hang in mid-air like a random piece of knowledge” (Fish). When a person talks, they do not think about the direct object in the sentence agreeing with everything else they are saying.  Therefore these would not be in the grading system created.

The universal rubric I created below would be what any writing assignment given would be scored with:

First and foremost, whatever prompt is given has to be understood.  If the understanding of the prompt is not clear, then the essay is not what the teacher is asking for.  Having a clear idea and understanding of what the essay is supposed to be about is necessary for a student’s point to be clear to the reader.  With this, having a thesis statement would still be necessary for a successful paper.  There does not need to be a specific way the statement should be written, but it needs to be there.  It would be helpful for a professor to look back to a few sentences to assess the clarity of the writing when grading. 

When Fish is asked what he considers a sentence, he mentions two definitions.  His first claim is, “A sentence is an organization of items in the world”.  Sentences are merely a collection of thoughts put together.  No matter what language or cultural influence is being used, sentences are all just organized thoughts.  Although Fish may not agree with this statement, as long as the reader can understand what one is saying, it makes sense to say it is correct.  Just like when people talk, if Standard American English is not used, the listener can still understand what someone is saying.  It would work the same way in an essay.  This system of grading may also work better because it would allow a writer to put their own style into it.  They may use fragmented sentences to emphasize a point or a run-on sentence to show how longing a certain topic is.  Writers would be able to add character in their writing, conveying their own emotions to the readers. 

Lastly, the use of punctuation would have to be taught.  Punctuation enhances a sentence by allowing the reader to understand when the thought is complete.  That would still apply to the grading system.  A writer needs to know what a comma is because besides a period, exclamation point, and question mark, it is one of the most common forms of punctuation.  According to Purdue OWL, “The comma is a valuable, useful punctuation device because it separates the structural elements of sentences into manageable segments.”  They then expand on listing the grammatical terms for using a comma.  The thought process behind a comma is mostly grammatical, but the sentence above stating how it separates the elements of a sentence would be how using a comma would be taught.  Since code-meshing writing could be seen as more casual, it is important to know when a period is used.  This would also help the reader understand where the organization of thoughts are ending if they are having trouble. 

This rubric would allow the creative freedom to come across without the worry of wondering if points are going to be taken off because it is not grammatically correct.  Based on the rubric above, I would grade this essay full points.  It has a clear focus and understanding of the prompt, “how should an essay be graded that is written in code-meshing.”  Sentences and thoughts are organized clearly and reflect the main point of the essay.  Punctuation is used correctly to emphasise the thoughts and ideas of the essay.  The rubric created above has the means to change and evolve with the term code-meshing.  The term is newer to society and it will take time to fully establish what is right and wrong in an essay when written in a combination of different dialects.  With the rubric I created, it will help to show how an effective grading system can transform writing in the classrooms.     

Works Cited

“Commas: Quick Rules.” Purdue OWL, https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/punctuation/commas/index.html. Accessed 8 November 2021.

Demby, Gene. “How Code-Switching Explains The World : Code Switch.” NPR, 8 April 2013, https://www.npr.org/blogs/codeswitch/2013/04/08/176064688/how-code-switching-explains-the-world. Accessed 8 November 2021.

Fish, Stanley. “What Should Colleges Teach?” The New York Times, The New York Times, 25

Aug. 2009, https://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/24/what-should-colleges-teach/.

Young, Vershawn Ashanti. “Should Writers Use They Own English?” Writing Centers and the

New Racism, 2010, pp. 61–72., https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctt4cgk6s.7.