An Intro to Language in Society

1
An Intro to Language in Society

• Languages, Dialects Standards and Vernaculars
• Regional, Class, Gender, and Age Differences
• U.S. and World Englishes

2
Doing Right By Kids

• Teachers are a wonderfully diverse bunch of
  folks. We differ in many areas . . .
  Regardless of the differences, however, we share
  a common, overarching goal we all want to do
  right by kids.
• (Stephen Cary in Second Language Learners p7)

3
Accents, Dialects and Language Varieties

• Accent
• Dialect
• Language

http//www.lsadc.org/web2/fldfr.htm (W. Wolframs
Sociolinguistics)
Dialect This term can carry pejorative
overtones. We use it here without such overtones
to describe language variationregional, social,
or ethnic.
4
Accent
Overlap Realistically, there is overlap between
accent and dialect.
What else is new? So do you!

• Linguistically speaking, accent refers to
  pronunciation, how a speaker speaks.

Did you know that you speak with an accent?
5
Dialect

• Linguistically speaking, dialect refers to the
  words and grammar used in speaking.
• Dialects, or variations in language, exist along
  regional, social, and ethnic lines.

Speaking None of us speaks without an accent or
dialect.
6
Regional Dialects From World to Local
Varieties of English
American Regional Dialects (http//www.ling.upenn.
edu/phono_atlas/NationalMap/NationalMap.html)

• World Englishes
• American English
• Midwestern English
• Michigan English
• Lower or Upper Peninsula? Detroit or Escanaba?
• Michigan Accent and Pronunciation Guide
  (http//www.ericweaver.com/stories/michiganaccent.
  html)

Overlap continued As with overlap between
dialect and accent, overlap also exists among
regional, social, and ethnic varieties of
language.