In my old job, one of the questions I asked on the first day was, “what supports do we have in place for our English Language Learners?” To which the reply was a very unsatisfactory, “none. We don’t have any ELLs – all our students are tested before being admitted to the school.”
Canada being the wonderful mosaic it is, there are a lot of people here for whom English (or French, if you live in a Francophone area) is not their first language. This isn’t necessarily a problem – most people speak enough English to get by professionally and socially, and those who don’t, learn (usually). If they don’t, they live in communities where they can get by without learning English, and although I think they’re missing a great opportunity (I personally love learning new languages) I’m okay with that.
But lots of these people have kids. And when their kids come to school, sometimes they don’t speak any English. And, mostly, that’s okay too. Most school boards in Canada (at least in urban areas) have really robust ELL (English Language Learners) programming. These students are fluent in their first language (whether it be Mandarin, Tagalog, Spanish, Icelandic or whatever) and with support at school, they become fluent in English.
It’s not the ELLs I worry about though. It’s the kids (like many at my last school) who didn’t learn another language before English. But (and don’t hit me for saying this) many of them also didn’t learn English – at least not properly. Most likely their parents were ELLs themselves, and chose to speak English to their children at home, so the kids grew up speaking English as an ELL would, but not as a typical native speaker would. And yeah, I get that I don’t speak English the same way my brother-in-law does (he was raised in the suburbs of London), and perhaps I don’t even speak English in the same way as my cousin-in-law (is that even a word?) who grew up in the suburbs of Detroit. But the difference in our use of the English language comes down to minor differences in pronunciation, spelling, idiom and slang. We don’t disagree on syntax or grammar, or even on the main elements of pronunciation.
So here’s the thing: sure, I will admit to being somewhat of a purist and possibly even a bit of a snob. But in whose book is it acceptable (or even understandable) for students in GRADE NINE, whose first language is supposedly English, to NOT know that “gonna” is not actually a word, per se, and should never be included in your typed, edited final copy of an essay? Or to consistently make errors in subject-verb agreement? Native speakers almost never get subject-verb agreement wrong; for instance, would you say, “I goes to the store” or “she go to the store”? No. And for so many of them, their vocabulary is very weak, compared to peers from families in which the parents speak English as their first language.
Again, don’t hit me. I have ZERO problem with ELLs or giving support to students learning English. And I fully expect that when I speak French or German, the people I speak to will be equally understanding and supportive of me as a non-native-speaker. But I do worry about some kids – the ones who aren’t getting support because they aren’t considered ELLs at all. The ones who think English is their first language, but who really just don’t speak it very well. Do they have any first language at all?
What do you think? Am I an incurable snob and elitist? Is this an extension of a debate that has been going on for generations, like Henry Higgins trying to correct Eliza Doolittle’s Cockney in George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion, or even Ebonics or the modern-day grassroots support of Singlish? Or do I have a point?
Ladies, excuse me, you are not language snobs. Language is our main vehicle of communication, and to speak it well and to write it well enhances our ability to communicate. Communication is vital. Communication fosters relationships. Communication fuels the information age.
I was fascinated and encouraged to learn about the ELL program in our schools. Could not this kind of support for speaking and writing English well be extended to all children who need it? Perhaps on the basis of teacher observations and recommendations or even a simple test? Kath, if subject-verb agreement errors or limited vocabulary are markers, surely a simple test could be designed to reveal difficulties in these areas and those children could then get the help they need?
I’m a total language snob – it’s one thing to speak, but its another thing entirely to write… I’m constantly correcting my son, who says things like “hafta” and “gonna” because he’s at reading/writing age, and mispronunciation of words confuses things, and makes learning to spell such a struggle. It’s necessary though.
I agree with you, Kath. I’m not sure what the answer is though. (Says the girl who lives In Montreal and doesn’t par-lay da French at all…)
I’m with you. I admit I’m a bit of a language snob too though. I think slang is fine in conversation, and texting, however, the written word should be “The Queen’s English”, as they say.
I understand why parents would try to speak English to their kids though. They want them to fit in and be successful. I’m not sure what the solution to that is….oh yeah, universal daycare and programs for parents, babies & tots!
I have to say that I totally agree! To me it just seems lazy. I too may be a bit of a language snob but there is no excuse for this and I worry about the long-term impact it will have as communication is changing and proper written and spoken language seem to be less valued.