Ages of English

Pick one aspect from the BBC Timeline which you find surprising, interesting or unexpected.  Write a couple of paragraphs about it including your personal response on your blog.

Birmingham Accent

 Watch the You Tube clip Birmingham: Reputation vs Reality.

Following your research into people's attitudes and perceptions of the Birmingham accent, write a paragraph which summarises your main findings and include a personal response to this. Consider:

- Were these ideas new to you?
- Were you aware of your own attitudes towards the accent?
- Do you think that having a Birmingham accent puts people at a disadvantage?
- Do you think accents matter? Why/why not?

Swearing!

 Ideas about what is appropriate and not appropriate language for context are regularly being debated. In June 2009, Ofcom published a report of its survey into public attitudes to swearing on television. Press responses ranged from ‘public relaxed about swearing’ (The Guardian) to outrage at the misrepresentative research methods (Daily Mail). Before we start a new academic year, it's worth remembering that the issue of acceptable language inside schools requires definite decisions from head teachers and managers. Some schools opt for ‘zero tolerance’, not just policing language in the classroom but also in the corridors and playground.

The question, of course, raises many linguistic issues. Dominant groups and social norms are important here. Public and private uses of language also matter. And of course, the idea that language is an aspect of identity, whether of an individual or a group. Is swearing in school an expression of personal freedom, or is it a rejection of social conventions and a deliberate choice to offend others? In school contexts, is it a part of ‘not knowing better’ that a good education can remedy?

Transition to A2 English Language 2012

Welcome to my A2 blog!  Please follow this blog.
You will find lots of useful links to websites which we will use as well as previous posts from last year.  These will give you an insight into what we shall be covering during the transition period.

Protecting our language

You are now going to practise being a journalist!

Research and plan your own response (about 800 words) to the Queen's English Society's idea that there should be an Academy to protect our language. Use the advice sheet on journalism to help you make your article both informative and entertaining. There is a link to an article debating the issue under Useful Links. There are also several useful worksheets on Moodle to help you with your research.

Language and Gender

You are going to be looking at the representation of men and women in advertisements such as this one.



What do they say about the people the were aimed at?

How does language communicate values and assumptions about gender roles?

Task 4 - New words - neologisms

Make notes on the factors which affect language. How/why are new words created? Do you think language change is a good thing? List 3 new words and state where they come from. Find definitions for prescriptivism and descriptivism.