Speaking the Language

Groups of people who gather together often develop insider ways of talking - different dialects, slang, jargon, or code words, even when they speak the same basic language as the nation or tribe to which they belong. Those who are part of a group identify with each other and classify those who do not use the same expressions as outsiders.

Academia is one such group and a rather large one, too. Students can be defined as new members of academia and may not be familiar with the insider language at first. Students should become familiar with formal grammar, the rules and regulations and styles of writing and speaking expected by professors, who are established members of academia. Happily, formal grammar is also widely used in business, politics, law, and many other areas of life. Formal grammar is well worth learning, especially since one’s future career may depend on knowing it.

When families and friends gather, their speech may seem odd, maybe even outlandish, to anyone not accustomed to hearing it; and there is no reason that groups familiar with each other shouldn’t have their own ways of talking, their distinct ways to communicate. It is wise, however, to know that places and people are not all the same. While slang and code words and various twists and turns of a language are useful and fun and good, they won’t serve when it comes time for a new member of academia, a student, to write an essay that will be read by a professor who is used to formal grammar and notes if it is not used.

No one type of language or way of speaking is better or worse than any other. There are just different times and places for each. Right, Dudettes?

See you next time the breeze is cool, the sun is up, and the waves roll into view! ‘Til then, hang ten!