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As being as a complex symbolic system; language has its own designs and styles to be used in different stages of age, occasions and even in social statuses. And what is appropriate at one time or place may not be at another. As a teacher, I do not want inappropriate word choice to get in the way of teaching and try to create awareness of what is or is not appropriate. This essay covers the understanding of appropriate usage of language.
Appropriateness as an optimal mapping between context and speech, or as 'natural speech', is also connected intrinsically with the socio-cultural notions of politeness and impoliteness. Frequently polite speech acts are seen as appropriate speech acts, and impolite speech acts are seen as inappropriate speech acts. When students are not taught how to deal with the differences in status there can be strange consequences. One is that learner may search for a means of expressing respect and choose an inappropriate one and use of informal language which should be restricted to peers. Teenagers have always had a sort of private language, loosely based around slang and popular culture, and it has a firm role in development of both self and of language in general. In fact, the evolution of a vibrant language in any culture involves adopting and adapting elements of street talk into more formal speech.
However, casual social interaction really should have no place in a formal learning environment, in which correct speech, respectful choice of vocabulary, and an emphasis on clarity and appropriate communication should reign. The most obvious reason for this is that both spoken and written English are effectively a reflection of a student’s linguistic ability – and their capacity to read a situation and to speak, write and behave in a manner that is appropriate to it. This is an essential skill in the workplace, so getting it right – teaching it, in fact – is paramount to the long-term success of this generation of students. But there is more. Creating a formal learning environment – one in which students understand their role and the expectations held for them – is associated with improved student performance and productivity.
There has always been “street speak” – forms of language specific to social groups, including teenagers – and there is no doubt that this enforces a sense of community, belonging, and identity. However, peppering language with so many diminutives of words and using this “private” language in social and public situations does nothing towards maintaining important standards and aiding communication. Correct speech, including choice of vocabulary, syntax and grammar, is very much the mainstay of successful communication between communities, age groups and cultures. In many languages speaker encounters with a specific grammar and vocabulary choice according to the status of the person whom talking to.
An inability to communicate with all ages and sectors of society is bound to put the speaker at a serious disadvantage when it comes to long-term achievement. It’s not “old-fashioned” to know when to use socially acceptable language; it’s a life-skill that should be nurtured.
A high school teacher and a student who are talking to each other in an English speaking country may both use the same polite phrases. Even though both speakers are of a different social status, the key factor in the appropriateness of language they use is their level of politeness. The polite English phrases an employee uses when they leave work might be the same phrases spoken by their boss back to them. Language teaching has traditionally been concerned with linguistic accuracy. Relating language to the situation involves making inferences which are essential for more than very basic communication. And then, perhaps, we’ll find that common ground of acceptable communication that is so necessary to self-presentation and understanding.
Concluding from all above written appropriateness in context has shown that both context and appropriateness are relational concepts, and that appropriateness cannot be defined without the explicit accommodation of context.
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