Dealing with Dialects

Based on content from “Your Voice and Articulation (4th Edition)
by Ethel C. Glenn, Phillip J. Glenn and Sandra Forman
and including contributions from my colleague Carrie Klypchak, at Texas A&M-Commerce

OUTLINE FOR Tony DeMars presentation on this panel, “Dealing With Dialects,” where I will talk about how dialects are not necessarily bad, and how students can learn to be "code switchers" -- they become bi-dialectal -- speaking their native dialect when they want and then can switch to Standard American dialect when appropriate.

The Standard American Dialect
•Dialect - a variation pattern of speech features within a given language that is characteristic of certain native speakers.
oVs. Accent – that usually refers to patterns from a speaker’s native language spilling over into production of a second language.
•Every person has a dialect
•Dialects vary in:
oVocabulary
oRhythm
oPronunciation

•Dialects can mark:
oGeographic areas
oEthnic and national groups
oSocioeconomic distinctions (upper class, working class, etc.)
oUrban vs. Rural

•Standard American
oGained widespread acceptance
oPreferred pronunciation in dictionaries
oGenerally associated with people living in parts of the North, Midwest, and West.
oStandard American is a dialect (not an ‘absence of dialect’) and has become most commonly accepted and employed in:
•Entertainment
•Education
•Business
•Political Worlds

Social Impact of Dialects
•People judge others by how closely they can speak
•Often how well people can speak standard American speech is a point of judgment (studies suggest – success, intelligence, ambition, credibility).
•We are always adapting how we speak for different people and in different situations – Learning to speak standard American is no different.
•Dialects – like language – evolve over time.

Positive Aspect of Dialects
•Help establish group membership
•Non-standard does not mean substandard
•You are not asked to give up the way you speak, but to become bi-dialectal or multi-dialectal
•Think of dialects as codes and become a proficient “code switcher”

Coaching students toward recognizing their own dialect
•African-American dialect?
•Southern dialect?
•Other specific examples

A Good Communicator – has a broad repertoire to choose the most effective way to connect to a designated receiver.