Will you please answer these three questios for my Sociolinguistic research?

Question

Please answer these questions, they are for my sociolinguistics class. There is not correct anser so just write your oppinion. It would also help me if you state your age and if you are a native English speaker and if you know other languages. IIf you are not a native English speaker please state what you native language is and if you know any other languages besides your native lang. and English. Thank you for taking the time

-Which English is ‘better’ American English or British English? Why?

-Which variery is taught/should be taught in the ESL (English as a second language) classroom? Why?

-Should students be exposed to different varieties? Why or why not?

Answer 1

23
Native English speaker
I also speak French and some Italian.
I work as an ESL and EFL teacher.

I don't believe that either English is "better", but I think that many students would benefit from beginning their studies with a speaker of American English. Chances are that this is the English they will hear most often in movie and on the radio, so it gives them a solid foundation.

An ESL classroom should meet three student needs: linguistic needs, communicative needs and skills needs. For example, a student may need to learn the past simple (linguistic) to go to a job interview (communicative) where he will have to speak (skills) about his work history. Or, a student may have to learn vocabulary relating to economics (linguistic) to read (skill) the business section of the newspaper (communicative). In all honesty, I think that the variety of English taught in the classroom is far less important than the things mentioned above. I will say that I think it's best for the teacher to teach the variety of English that they speak as a native language, as it will just come out more naturally and they'll have an easier time fielding questions.

I don't think it's very important for students to be exposed to different varieties of English because American and UK English are extremely similar, and most of the differences between them can be easily figured out if you consider the context. For example, Americans say "pants" while Brits say "trousers". If you're talking about getting ready to go out and getting dressed, the meaning of either word would be obvious.

Answer 2

1. Neither / Both - both are widely understood. Many people in other countries speak British English as a second language, but lots of people understand American English too (especially from movies and things)

2. Whatever variety will benefit the student the most depending on their location. Once they get a basic grasp of the language, then they can learn the subtle differences.

3. Yes as much as possible! Being able to understand and be understood in different situations is a very vital, and very basic life skill. Some things that work in one context may mean something different in another context.

Native language: English

Other languages spoken: After English, French is my best language, then Spanish. I'm not really fluent in either, but I can get by.

Age: 18

Answer 3

-19
-I know much of english but native is Finnish. (grew up with both)

-I know some Spanish and Italian

-I believe that british english is slightly better than that of american because american has a bit too much "slang" usage and it can get confusing on occation for a non-native speaker.

-My class has no real "variety" of english, it is just "english-in- general" as a good way of explanation

-I believe that differences should be taught in the class so that students are aware that there are in fact differences between the two and that there is not just one "type" of english

Answer 4

Neither is better, it depends on the area of the world i nwhich you live.

Again the variety depends on which continent you are on. In American ESL we teach American English.

Students should be exposed only if a story or movie dictates otherwise it can get pretty confusing for them.