Our approach to teaching HEL is to embrace the variation of language and give voice to ordinary people speaking these variants. While we must rely on textual documentation for most historical samples, we do have recordings of older speakers in American English that continue to exhibit some of the same dialect features found in early Englishes. These voices are found in the interview data collected for the Dictionary of American Regional English, a six-volume dictionary of regional American English variation (DARE, 1985-2012). As we near the end of our HEL course, we present an overview of the settlement patterns that have most influenced American regional dialects. Throughout these lectures, we play recordings from DARE speakers as evidence of dialect features that retain links to British and other historical English dialects. Past courses we have taught revealed that standard American English-speaking students are often dubious of language features or words that they have never heard before. To counter these views, we engage students in several linguistic sleuthing activities that allow them to become linguistic researchers as they must use DARE evidence to trace dialect features and word etymologies, thereby enriching students’ experiences learning the history of English. To illustrate, we present three such activities.
The first activity is a group project in which a small cohort of students are given an audio clip that illustrates a feature such as a-prefixing, want plus
“Authority and American Usage,” an interesting essay written by the brilliant and quick-witted David Foster Wallace, presents an argument on different ways of understanding the ever-changing American usage in the English language. Keeping up with the English language in America is like chasing your new, untrained puppy down the street. Tiring and basically impossible to get a hold of. Over the past centuries, the English language has evolved so much, that if you took a person from the 13th century and threw them in the middle of New York City in 2013, it would be as if two different languages were being spoken.
As society begins to change so do other aspects that are within that particular society. Within the articles “Why Good English is Good for You” by John Simon, “Do You Speak American” by Robert MacNeil, and “Lost in America” by Douglas McGrey, each author gives their own insight as to how social changes have impacted the language within America, as well as the implications of those changes. While they each argue different views on how those implications have benefitted or hindered the language, they all agree on the fact that the language is ever-changing.
(1) The use of natural dialect can be seen throughout the slave narrative interviews through words and phrases used that were common during the period of slavery, but are not used today. One example can be seen in the dialect used by former slave Mama Duck, “Battlin stick, like dis. You doan know what a battling stick is? Well, dis here is one.” Through incomplete sentences and unknown words the natural dialect of the time can be seen. Unfamiliar words such as shin-plasters, meaning a piece of paper currency or a promissory note regarded as having little or no value. Also, geechees, used to describe a class of Negroes who spoke Gullah. Many examples can be seen throughout the “Slave Narratives”
In her essay, “Newfoundlandese, If You Please” Diane Mooney takes us on a virtual road trip around the island of Newfoundland, her home, discussing regional language variations, and giving us insights into the histories of the communities we encounter. In her very first sentence, Mooney refers to Newfoundland having one dialect but then goes on to describe in detail the various dialects across the island. Throughout her essay, Mooney describes her experiences with language, and gives us first-hand accounts of interactions with locals, providing us an insight into the pronunciation and vernacular of a given region. Her view is that the regional variations in the English language spawned from the origins of the original settlers, the influence
United States of America, small in history but large in diversity continues to face new challenges with language as time continues to turn. In the documentary “Do You Speak American?” Robert MacNeil analyzes the English language and reveals many dialects that culturally defines us. Regional dialect is one of the many strongholds of all cultures and now it has reached its’ zenith and today it is slowly declining because it does not possess the human nature of advancement. Optimistically, it allows people to learn how to cooperate with each other. In order to advance and adopt a person has to change; I believe that the acceptance of cultural adaptations, diversity, and industrialization can prove that the decline of speech does not cause a
Dial, Wylene P. The Dialect of the Appalachian People. January 1969. http://www.wvculture.org/history/journal_wvh/wvh30-2.html. 21 November 2014.
Within this paper we will take a brief look at the Language Acquisition Principles and how they work on the behalf of ELL students. We will see how these principles can be applied within our own learning environment. There is much information from Walqui article that gives a brief overview of ELL students and how things looked in the past for these students. Now that times has change we will see how educators can make the requirements for ELL students better and more effective for teacher and students. Hopefully, as we look at ways of changing learning for our ELL students we must remember that every student learns differently. Even if you follow the principles from
The United States of America is one of the world’s most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations. Even though there is not an official national language, most Americans speak Standard American English (SAE). However, the most prevalent native English vernacular dialect in the United States is African American Vernacular English (AAVE). According to Sharon Vaughn, AAVE is “a dialect used by some African Americans” (110). In order to examine AAVE, one must explore the origins, grammatical features, and prominent resolutions, which created a precedent for educating students that speak dialects other than Standard American English.
Speaking American: A History of English in the United States tells the story of the evolution of English and how it has been effected(affected?) by different regions of the continental United States. The author, Richard W. Bailey, passed away before the book’s publication. I believe that this is one of the reasons for the book’s rambling and inefficient writing style as the editors, because of their inability to contact the deceased, “left potential ambiguity unresolved” (Bailey xi).
Communicating what we want to say, how we want to say it is the goal of expressing ourselves linguistically. For English Language Learners (and their teachers), the ability to do that successfully in their new language presents a challenge. In the content areas of instruction, it is especially important to draw out the information that a student already knows in their native language – even when they do not have the linguistic ability to express themselves in English – in order to assess their level of understanding and engage prior knowledge. Using non-linguistic representations provides a way of bridging that gap between actual understanding and the ability to express that
Pennsylvania Dutch is one of the hardest dialects to study, and yet has an extremely interesting history as well as a significant impact on the English language of the Pennsylvania area. Study of Pennsylvania Dutch is difficult for researchers because of the scarcity of books printed in it. The language had been preserved largely by word of mouth and lacks a traceable history through written works, making it difficult to trace its development (Follin, 1929, p. 455). However, what there has been much research on is how it differs from modern German, also called High German, and also how Pennsylvania Dutch and English have mutually affected each other. Researchers can even tell which dialects Pennsylvania Dutch evolved from and whence
Throughout The Mother Tongue, Bill Bryson construes the origins and the history of English and the language's countless quirks.
It is arguable that African American English is a dialect of contemporary American English. While AAE is different and is easily distinguishable from Standard American English, the two dialects still share similarities and are forms of vernacular English. As AAE stems from and shares many linguistic patterns with Creole and other African languages, it is possible to argue that AAE is in fact not related to contemporary American English at all. However, I feel that the different influences on language are simple markers of regional variation and not enough to fully
This course focused on a numerous languages that were undergoing change. The simplest and most relevant for many Americans are the changes that are occurring in English. America is a great melting pot of different people and as such English’s multiple dialects reflect cultural diversity. One of the most studied and still not understood dialects is African American English. The point of contention between the ideas for the origin of African American English is whether it was based on an existing dialect in the south or if it was creole of English and different West African languages. Either way this is an example of a rapid language change that has persisted over time. It is illogical to believe that the slaves who were forced to learn English did not incorporate some of their own language. How else could they have communicated before they fully understood English. An example of slower language
030-second presentations Students prepare and record a 30 second presentation on topic of their choice. 0 Tour guide Students make a short video of a place they know well. This could be their house, neighborhood, school, etc. They could either give the commentary as they film or one student could be the presenter, while the other does the filming. o What's in your bag/pocket? Students take out things they have in their bag or pocket and take a photo of all the items. They then write the names of all the objects as a caption for the photo. o Create a picture dictionary Students take photos of objects around their house/classroom and write what each object is as a caption to each photo. o I am eating... Over the course of one day students take photos of everything that they eat and write what the foods are as captions for each photo. Students can then compare who has the best/worst diet. o Describe a process Students chose a process of an activity they know well (example: make a sandwich, download a video, change a tire, etc.). They take a photo of each stage and write a description for each photo as a