Recognize
Recognize and describe the value of different languages, dialects and registers in your own and others’ texts.
Each person has their own background and story. This class is proof of that. If you read all of the personal introductions on the discussion board it is clear we all are different in many ways. I think the value of other languages, dialects and registers is great. I think that these aspects of ourselves play directly in to our perspectives and writing styles. This can be important when receiving feedback from peers. If someone thinks about a topic differently than I do, they may be able to provide insight to me that helps me grasp the topic more strongly (or vice versa). These sorts of insights could come from things like varying life experiences or level of education in a subject. However, they could just as easily come from variation in language (and culture). In the Lippi-Green discussion, I respond, "I know if I were to answer these questions via spoken language, it would be much different in regards to the flow, syntax and actual vocabulary used. However, I think the general information and content I would be trying to convey would be the same. It is a striking example of how written and spoken language can differ yet be effective in their own ways." I think this fact is similar for different languages, dialects and registers.
In Project 2, the angle I chose to focus on was words and language common to my community as well as outsiders. I wanted to show some of the differences (and some of them rather amusing differences) between how nuclear engineers use a word that a non-nuclear engineer may use and be familiar with in another way. Furthermore, I extended this to illustrate how important using language in this specific way helps to solve real world problems and is important to society. I even gave a counter-example of how misuse of proper language can be costly, "In engineering, it is important that we all speak the same language because there are many subtleties that could lead to issues. For example, in 1999 NASA lost a $125 million Mars orbiter because one engineering team used English units of measurement while another team used metric system." Recognizing the value of language within my own discourse community has helped me to see the value in other texts and communities.
Through the course we've had readings and projects related to different dialects or languages. The most recent project, Project 3, I wrote about an emerging written language that we call textspeak. In this instance the topic was looking at whether this new linguistic diversity seen in mostly the younger generation is affecting their other language skills (like SWAE). I propose that it is not affecting current written English, but John McWhorter and others have marvelous articles in NY Times and TED talks that accept textspeak as a dialect and show its importance and value. I explore a bit of those ideas in my project by playing devil's advocate for the evolution of English by recognizing that English has evolved many times over in its existence (examples: Olde English/medieval language or Shakespearean English versus SWAE today)