ABSTRACT
Common Core Language Standard 5.3 addresses the study of dialects and language variations. As part of a more general statement that students should “Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening,” this standard specifically calls for students to “Compare and contrast the varieties of English (e.g., dialects, registers) used in stories, dramas, or poems” (Common Core Standards, 2010). Dialect is defined as a “label to refer to any variety of language which is shared by a group of speakers” (Wolfram & Schilling-Estes, 1998, p. 250). Kolln and Funk (2009) explain that dialects often vary based on an individual’s regional, ethnic, or social background. Three elements of language that often vary across dialects are terminology, sentence structure, and the plural form of you. Figure 15.1 (page 158) contains some examples of each of these linguistic elements that vary across dialects. It’s important to note that an individual might choose to use dialect in a particular situation. For example, someone might use the regional Southern term y’all in an informal setting with other speakers who share the same background, but choose not to use that term in a professional context. An individual who moves between informal and formal language is shifting between linguistic registers (Biber, 1995). The register in which one chooses to communicate can impact the level of regional, ethnic, or social dialect evident in one’s language. Common Core Standard 5.3 is particularly important because it asks students to do more than simply identify dialects in literature-it asks students to compare the dialects, registers, and language variations they find
in written works. In the next section, we’ll consider why identifying and comparing these language variations is important to good writing.
