LESSON PLAN

LINGUISTIC VARIATION AND ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING

English is not the language with most native speakers but because of its influence it
became one of the most spoken second or foreign languages in todays society. This is
due to its relevance in todays world economy and political system since the end of the
Second World War the United States is still the most powerful country in the world
technology academics information pop culture tourism etc. !ecoming one of the main
language communication gave English a status of "lingua franca. # lingua franca can be
defined as a language widely used$adopted for communication between two speakers
whose native languages are different from each others and where one or both speakers
are using it as a "second language.
Estimates put the number of native speakers of English between %&& and '&&
million people and the number of non(native speakers at a range of several hundred
million to more than two billion all over the world. This result of the language ability to
effectively communicate in English is considered a skill that enables individuals to deal
with the demands and challenges of everyday life in globali)ed world.
English language is truly a global language that is used in a vast number of
countries and territories for a myriad different functions as we have pointed before. The
linguistic variation is at least partly due to the fact that no other language has been put to
so many uses massively by so many people in so many places. *owever the encounter
with more or less intelligible varieties of English obviously added to the so called "culture
shock generally caused by foreign environments.
!ut what is the difference between LANGUAGE and its VARIATIONS+
,anguage can be defined as a system of verbal and non(verbal conventional signs
that allows its users to communicate. Sociolinguistic studies since the -./&s have
pointed out that no language is homogenous. 0t has variations whether they are at levels
of pronunciation vocabulary grammar.
These variations are restricted by internal factors from their own language and by
e1ternal factors specially by social factors.
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These factors affects the language being used and also influence the way in which
listeners :udge speakers.
English is not only one language; it can take many forms. 7owadays there is no
longer a distinction between !ritish Standard English <disseminated by !!4= and
#merican Standard English <disseminated by #!4= spoken by a minority of people in
!ritain and the United States but also a number of other "standard national varieties of
English and of course a multitude of other geographical and social varieties. #lso
between !ritish and #merican English there are within their own territories many varieties
each one with its own vocabulary pronunciation and grammar.
>or instance what is #merican English anyway+ 0s it the language spoken by most
#merican people+ #nd how about !lack English *ispanic English East 4oast English
4hinese English :ust to mention a few variations within the this specific country+ Which
one of them is "standard language+ The fact is that in #mericas case immigrants have
influenced and appropriated the English language for their own uses in their own ways.
!ecause of these varieties it is difficult to describe English as one thing.
So three developments are particularly relevant of which only one is directly linked
to globali)ation?
1. there is an ongoing process of strengthening of regional and social
varieties in areas where English is traditionally the native language of the
ma:ority of the people;
2. a growing self(confidence of previously often stigmati)ed native and non(
native national and regional varieties outside U@ and US# such as
#ustralian English 7ew Aealand English South #frican English Bamaican
English and 0ndian English :ust to name a few of them;
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3. due to globali)ation there is a growing contact between learners of English
and native speakers on the one hand and between learners of English
from different backgrounds on the other. This leads to the increased use of
E,> <English as a ,ingua >ranca= and has led some scholars to argue in
favour of abandoning the native(speaker standard altogether.
E,T classroom currently seems to be the most promising way to provide learners of
English with an education which gives them the ma1imum possible communicative
competence. The increasing importance of different Englishes particularly native
varieties other than !ritish and #merican however appears to be marginally reflected in
E,T curricula and teaching material.
AND NOW, WHAT ENGLISH SHOULD I TEACH?
E,T curriculum focuses on the ability to communicate and has to be placed in the
tradition of communicative language(learning?
1. *ow can E,T help to produce graduates who are able to communicate in
as many situations as possible+
2. What role can sociolinguistic aspects play in this conte1t+
0 believe that this general demand for a more elaborate attention to varieties in E,T
should be specified separately for the various levels of linguistic analyses i.e. grammar
pronunciation and vocabulary.
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st
. COMMUNICATIVE
>rom a communicative point of view its important to enable twenty(first century
learners of English to understand a variety of accents so that they can effectively
communicate with most of the speakers of English. #t the same time such receptive
training will create awareness among learners that English most likely :ust like their
mother tong is not monolithic. 0t is very important to train learners to be able to produce
any widely understood accent of English. *owever being able to produce of imitate
different accents of English does not benefit learners communicative competence.
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E1.? C09E2S DThe 0talian man who went to EaltaF
D#ccents around the worldF
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nd
.LEICAL
#t the le1ical level learners should also receive broad receptive training and should
be confronted with a number of different varieties from an early age of study to enable
them to understand speakers from different historical geographical and social
backgrounds and to increase awareness that there is a considerable amount of variation in
language use in English.
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!d
. VOCA"ULAR#
#s far as vocabulary is concerned there should be a certain amount of variety(
related productive training particularly at the intermediate and advanced levels to enable
learners to understand and communicate and with speakers from different backgrounds.
Such training also increases learners awareness that a certain amount ok knowledge
about varieties is necessary to be able to communicate effectively in English in speech
and writing and that communication has to be geared to their recipients background to
avoid misunderstandings and communicative breakdowns.
E1.? Sandra 4isneiros THoMS
D!reakfast lunch and dinner. *amandeggs. That was the only word he knewF <p.GG=
DWe come from Te1as ,ucy says and grins. *er was born here but me 0m Te1as.
Hou mean she 0 IEsperan)aJ say.
7o 0m from Te1as and doesnt get it.F
#lice Walkers Color Purple
The way you know who discover #merica 7ettie say is think bout cucumbers. That
what 4olumbus sound like. 0 learned all about 4olumbus in first grade but look like
he the first thing 0 forgot. She say 4olumbus come here in boats call the 7eater the
6eter and the Santomareater. 0ndians so nice to him he force a bunch of Kem back
home with him to wait on the Lueen.
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TEACHERS ROLES USING VARIATION IN ELT CLASSES
e1pose students to different language varieties in listening and reading te1ts
so that they do not only hear the teachers voice;
enable students to effectively communicate in a ma1imum
situations$encounters as many varieties as possible;
develop an awareness in linguistic diversity and learn systematically about
how varieties differ from each other from a linguistic point of view no
variety is "better than the other. They are simply different. >rom a social
point of view however varieties do become more prestigious <the so called
standard language has been the socially prestigious dialect= connected
with the political and cultural center;
prepare students to get in contact with different language(varieties and
different cultural situations at some later stage.
CONCLUSION
0t has been pointed out to learners of English that the English language is not
monolithic but a constantly evolving dynamic system with a pluricentric structure. Teacher
and other foreign language researchers should make good use of the growing body of
systematic linguistic descriptions of variety of English in order to produce material to help
learners of English with learning about varieties and variations.
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