I Have Been Vilified

After being away from my computer for one day I was astonished to see that Tom and Brittany’s “Right and Wrong Pronunciation Debate” has caused so many postings. First, if I knew my comments would be attacked in such a vicious manner, I would not have posted them. I also did not know the debate would transform into expressions beyond opinion of the subject matter and delve into personal injury.

I think maybe my comment was misunderstood by everyone. Let me try to make it clearer here:

I did some research on phonics relating to the continuing debate.

There are standard/nonstandard, formal/informal, and proper/improper ways to pronounce words in the English language. The standard, formal, or proper way to say a word depends on the dominant culture of where it is being said. If you pronounce a word while speaking, you may not be pronouncing it the nonstandard, informal, or improper way. For example, if you are talking to the Queen and pronounce something that goes against received pronunciation, and then you are pronouncing that word in the nonstandard, informal, or improper way.

For the right and wrong aspect of it I feel that many are misunderstanding the definitions of certain words.

Wrong: 1. not proper or usual; not in accordance with requirements or recommended practice: the wrong way to hold a golf club.

2. Unacceptable or undesirable according to social convention.

3. Not in accord with established usage, method, or procedure.

Right: 1. in conformity with fact, reason, truth, or some standard or principle

2. socially approved, desirable, or influential

3. properly or fittingly

Now that these definitions are understood, let me make my case even more clear, yet again. First, if you can say a word wrong then you must be able to say a word right. 1. So, if I was to pronounce a word in the English language that was not pronounced that way in any dialect, accent, or by any other human, then I would be pronouncing that word “wrong” because it was against and unacceptable with all social conventions. (Many ESL people and people with speech disorders struggle with this, which is why they have speech therapists) 2. There are four ways to say almond in America that are socially and culturally accepted, so if I pronounced almond another way then it would not be right, it would be improper or unusual and would not fit the recommended practice. 3. My last point is that if you follow the International Phonetic Alphabet the world uses and is socially accepted worldwide, you are speaking “right,” and if you do not, you are speaking “wrong.” If you take this point a step further and are talking about other languages, such as French or Spanish, there are absolute right and wrong ways to say words; so if you are using examples of some ethnic words being arbitrary in their pronunciation, you are sorely mistaken.

Penultimate Conclusion: Since we have normative ways to pronounce words in the English language in social and cultural aspects, there are “right” and “wrong” ways to say words. Since, I am now a master teacher, it has been my pleasure to educate all of you.
Conclusion: Often a teacher's job is not to tell students what to think but how to think by questioning opinions posed and to consider different perspectives on an issue by using various sources, not only one. This type of synthesis and evaluation influences children to develop higher order thinking and the ability to navigate a variety of texts in more than one way.