Blackwell UK
Language is Power
ISBN: 9780571190478
Format: Paperback
Publisher: Faber and Faber
Current liberal orthodoxy is against imposing Standard English on school students. But has this inflicted lasting damage on a generation of children? The author proposes that Standard English is a crucially important variety and examines whether British English will lose out to American English. More
The current liberal orthodoxy in the United Kingdom, the United States, and elsewhere in the English-speaking world, is against imposing Standard English on school students. But does this truly protect the underprivileged, or has it inflicted lasting educational damage on a generation of children? This study argues that Standard English is not merely one variety among many, but is a much more important and valuable variety than other, non-standard dialects. The author, who also wrote "Does Accent Matter?", discusses whether the worldwide teaching of Standard English amounts to "linguistic imperialism", and examines whether British English will inevitably be superseded by American English.
