Australian Standard English Language

Australia is celebrated for its multiculturalism and acceptance of ethnic minorities, however, according to linguist Ben crustal ‘Australia…recaptured by a pervasive monolingual mindset which sees monolingualism as the norm and multilingualism as the exception even as a problem or deficit.’ Although ethnolects are viewed negatively by the mainstream society, its usage is both beneficial to ethnic minorities and has been adopted as the Lingua Franca in some situations. As a result of the majority’s consensus on the dislike of ethnolects, minorities are pressured to adopt Standard Australian English (SAE) in formal and public domains; limiting the usage of ethnolects. These observations are reflected in a recent interview with X; a forty-year-old

Language use in Australia constantly and rapidly changes to reflect the ever-evolving Australian national identity. It is being influenced by American culture, through its pervasive media, and altered to create a unique identity that addresses the needs of the younger Australians. Technology, the loss and gain of expressions, changing perception of taboo words and political correctness also attribute to the way that language has evolved to fabricate our national identity.

In the article “2b or not 2b”, David Crystal begins with discussing how others such as John Humphry argued that texters are “vandals who are doing to our language what Genghis Khan did to his neighbors 800 years ago. They are destroying it” (335). This is also the common belief of most people. People often argue about the bad points of technology over our language. However, Crystal believes that texting can improve children’s ability to read and write rather than hinder their literacy as many people claim. He also argues that not all texting are done in abbreviated words. Complex messages and institutional messages are often texted in standard form of

We as a society are evolving with each generation to come. We are getting stronger, faster, and smarter. Just as cell phones are no longer square blocks with numbers on them and TV’s are not in black and white, writing itself has also evolved. Once upon a time many wrote and spoke in a Shakespearean form of language and over the years it has evolved into something we call modern English. In recent years, technology has advanced greatly and cell phones have become one of our primary use of communication. With cell phones came a new form of writing called text messaging. Text messaging is used to send short, concise messages to anyone around the world. Often times text messages involve the use of abbreviations which stand for different things and also involves frequent use of emoji’s as a form of expression. This form of writing is now considered informal writing and is not acceptable in academic settings. In Michaela Cullington’s essay “Does Texting Affect Writing?” she touches on both sides of whether texting is hindering students writing or if it’s actually having a positive effect. She then makes is clear that she believes most students are educated enough to know when text speak is appropriate and when it’s not so therefore it has no effect on students. Although, I agree with her thesis, she lacks credibility due to her insufficient evidence. In addition, I also believe

“There is more pleasure to building castles in the air than on the ground.” This quote by Edward Gibbon illustrates the intensity of writing and what gratification it can hold. When one writes, they are not confined to one certain formula. A person is able to express their thoughts and feelings in any way they choose. Language is a border for many people in that some cannot comprehend a certain language, understand how to use it, or recognize what is being said to them. On the other side of the border, they are not viewed as equals or as important compared to those who are not competing with this barrier. In his essay “Coming into Language,” Jimmy Santiago Baca uses his personal experiences to demonstrate how much

According to Ethnologue, there is reportedly ‘7 097 living languages worldwide’ (Simons, 2016) furthermore; Anderson (2012) explains the decline of the number of languages worldwide as being due to the growth of the major languages; a lesser utilised language dies when it ceases to be learnt by children. Standard Australian English (SAE) is the language used by the majority of the Australian population and its Government. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics; with a population of over 21.5 million people less than a quarter of them speak a language other than English in their home and that quarter includes the speaking of about 145 Indigenous Australian languages; a number which has decreased from the 250 or so Indigenous Australian

We carry our cellphones with us at all times, and with all this online connection, you would think that stepping back and disconnecting is a huge achievement. But this is a new way of life. Nathan Jurgenson, in his article “The IRL Fetish” says, “We have come to understand more and more of our lives through the logic of digital connection. Social media is more than something we log onto; it’s something we carry within us. We can’t log off.”. He explains how we are so deeply connected with technology that it is nearly impossible to stay ‘old-fashioned’. We are learning to accept technological advancements because they are inevitable. In other words, to adapt to this new form of literacy is much easier than avoiding it. In recognition that texting truly is literacy, one English teacher had her students put excerpts of Richard III into “text speak” to show that they fully understand the material. Educators are embracing texting as a new form of learning because it clearly is not going away. Students enjoy texting as a way to escape reality and fail to recognize the literary benefits. Texting will continue to encourage students to read and write as well as improve spelling with phonological

People claim that new developments have caused kids to be so dependent on their devices, that they can't think for themselves. This claim can also be turned around by saying that technology has given kids more opportunities and chances to learn, and in particular, more opportunities to write (Source 7, Clive Thompson). An example of this is a study done at Stanford University, where it was discovered that Stanford students did a stunning 38 percent of their writing outside of the classroom (Source 7, Clive Thompson). With the developments of E-mail, texting, and social media such as Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, younger people are constantly writing in their every day lives. In the past, people would, for the most part, stop writing once the finishes their education. Now however, people are more comfortable, and more used to, writing. And while the argument that technology has decreased level of the vocabulary and vernacular of young people is true in some cases, the increase in writing shown by young people has led to a greater ability to convey information to other people, and a greater comfort in talking to people they don't know (Source 7, Clive Thompson). As Andrea Lunsford says, "I think we're in the midst of a literacy revolution the likes of which we haven't seen since Greek Civilization" (Source 7, Clive

LaDwaina Barron-Lillard Mrs. Gage ENG 1301 14 September 2014 A Rhetorical Analysis of “The New Literacy” Clive Thompson Thompson employs the rhetorical appeal of logos and pathos effectively in his attempt to persuade his audience of the positive effect that social media and its platform has played in reviving literacy in the new generation. Although Thompson delivers a vivid picture of the progression of literacy; then and now by using factual statements and examples along with his warm tone, dissecting all of his persuasive appeals, shows that the lack of ethical appeal may cause his target audience to doubt his credibility.

Facebook encourages narcissistic blabbering, video and PowerPoint have replaced carefully crafted essays, and texting has dehydrated language into “bleak, bald, sad shorthand” (as University College of London English professor John Sutherland has moaned).” (Source 7) this quote says that technology is to blame for kids today not being able to write, and she uses Facebook and texting as an example. My opinion, I think he’s right because we use different types of speech while doing or talking or even making a status because we feel like that is the thing to do, when it would be easier if you just use this type of speech for everything that you do. For instance, would you talk to your parents the way you talk to your friends, or would you talk to the principle like he’s your pet dog? There is a purpose for these different types of speech but at the same time, I believe that most of the reasons are irrelevant.

“Does Texting Affect Writing” is about Michaela Cullington, the author, comparing two opposing perspectives. The perspective is whether texting hinders the formal writing skills of students or not. Millennials are a population that cannot go a day without looking at their phones so, due to the “increasing use of mobile phones, concerns have been raised about its influence on their literacy skills. No matter if it is sending or receiving a text or checking social media sites, technology has taken over the lives of the young generations. The essay “Does Texting Affect Writing?” in They Say, I say exposes how the significant action of texting and using textspeak, i.e. abbreviations and symbols, may be hindering the writing skills of teenaged students. People communicate using textese to “more quickly type what they are trying to say” (Cullington, 2017, p. 361). Textese is a “register that allows omission of words and the use or textisms: instances of non-standard written language such as 4ever” (Van Dijk, 2016). When these people use textese often, it can become habitual and transition into their school assignments. Michaela Cullington constantly repeats words and uses comparisons and abnormalities for the concerns about textspeak, the responses to the concerns, methods and the discussion of findings on the topic to be analyzed.

As time goes on, everything that we do in life modernises alongside us. Many people hold the opinion that ‘old fashioned’ methods of language use were more caring and creative, and that modern technology allows us to simply be ‘lazy’. However by looking at examples of texting, and/or web-based interaction, I will be able to show that modern language use can too be very creative.

Everyone has heard adults complaining and debating about how texting is destroying the younger generation’s ability to write and speak properly. However, people have argued agnaist this point. “Texting properly isn’t writing at all — it’s actually more akin to spoken language,” writes John McWhorter in Is Texting Killing the English Language?. McWhorter has a quite different opinion on if texting is destroying the English Language. He argues that texting is just a way of writing that reads like speaking, which is now the way people communicate with each other.

There are many indicators of identity by which we are made known individually, socially and culturally; the best of these would be language and how it has shown great flexibility in accommodating the needs of people. Through language people have been able to establish their identities and cultivate friendships with others who share the same common ground. By looking at accents such as Broad Australian English, slang and phonological features as they apply to Australian varieties, we can see how it has forged solidarity and assisted in creating an identity on an individual and national scale.

Every human culture has a system of language, which has similar grammatical rules and design, which change and adapt depending on cultural, social, or geographic context. Traditionalists believe language is an unchanging symbolic system with a set of rules that students learn at school (Gardner, 2017a). Lyons (1995) describes language as a conventional system. Similarly, Chomsky (1957) claims language has a set of sentences that have either finite or infinite elements. Likewise, Clark (1996, as cited in Gee & Hayes, 2011) states language is a cognitive process that describes how people speak grammatically. Every language shares Syntax (grammatical rules) and Semantics (structure, phrases, clauses) however, the Phonology (sounds), Lexis (vocabulary) and Orthography (spelling rules) can change depending on the context or relationship of people communicating (Chomsky 1957, 1986; Comrie 1981; Greenberg 1978). Therefore, language is dynamic and the meaning placed on words or the Phonology, Lexis or Orthography can change to meet the context of the situation (Gardner, 2017b). For example, Australian English uses words like colour, mum, recognise, behaviour, whereas, American English spells the same terms color, mom, recognize, behavior (Gardner, 2017c; Grellier & Goerke, 2014). Similarly, Australian has different types of dialects and languages that people use during conversations. For example, Aboriginal English is a variety of English spoken within remote communities.