Mason

Many people view Standard English as correct English. It is certainly the variety which is taught to foreign learners of English and, in its written form. It represents the form which is found in most types of writing—school text-books, government documents, newspapers and literature .But Standard English is only one variety among the many varieties of English, though it has acquired a special position among these varieties because it is used as the medium of education in England…Because of the position of Standard English it is often taken subconsciously as a norm in discussions of language acquisition, change and varieties…The effect of broadcasting has been to allow people to hear many different varieties of English from all over the world. Although this has not necessarily undermined the perceived status of Received Pronunciation, it perhaps has made it appear to speakers of the language that a high degree of variety exists and that many people, even quite distinguished ones, can use forms of spoken English which differ from those of Received Pronunciation.

Lister

A standard language is a variety of a language that is socially and culturally predominant and is generally accepted as the most proper form of that language. Written Standard English is, with minor differences, primarily in spelling, the same world over .However, with reference to the spoken language, the term Standard English must be further qualified .The Standard English of New Zealand is by no means identical to the Standard English of Ireland .Indeed, even within a given country, what is considered standard may vary from area to area … Diversity among the regional dialects of England, particularly in pronunciation, is greater than in any other part of the world where English is spoken as a native language . English is also the only English-speaking nation with an official or quasi-official standard dialect, which we can call Standard British English (SBE) .This dialect is a social and educational, rather than regional dialect. It is superimposed upon regional dialects; in effect, many of its users are bidialectal to some extent, able to speak both SBE and a regional dialect .SBE is the English taught in the public (that is, private) schools of England and Wales.

Maitland

The rapid development in public broadcasting after about 1920 led in England and abroad to the establishment of BBC English as an actual spoken standard. This standard, alternatively known as Received Pronunciation, is that of a social and educational elite.

Mansfield

But when we are communicating with “outsiders”, and especially if we are communicating in writing, we will almost certainly do best with spoken Standard English .The reasons are very clear .To begin with, though most English speakers speak some nonstandard dialect, they almost certainly understand the educated speech of their region and, if they’re literate, written Standard English. (The latter, in fact, is acceptable currency almost anywhere in the English-speaking world.) The overwhelming majority of English-language publications—newspapers, magazines and books—are written, apart from some dialogue passages, in Standard English .The directions and manuals that come with medicines, many foodstuffs, and the innumerable gadgets that enrich or complicate our lives are in Standard English . And the governmental and corporate bureaucrats that most of us have to correspond with from time to time deal in Standard, if often heavily jargonized English .In short, Standard English is‘ better than other dialects because with it we can give information to and get information from, many more sources than with any other dialect.

Tweed

Standard English was for a long time essentially a written form of the language, but it did influence the use of grammar and vocabulary in speech, and even pronunciation .In all parts of the country (the UK) , local forms and usages have been subject to displacement : as fashions have changed and new forms have been accepted in the standard language and have gradually spread to local dialects…The vast majority of English speakers today have a standardized variety of English … Agreement on matters of pronunciation seems to have developed in the nineteenth century, especially in the public schools of the south of England .This has led to a widespread acceptance in England of one variety of pronunciation as a standard and this is the type that was adopted in the 1920s for broadcasting by the BBC .It is known as Received Pronunciation, or more commonly as RP .An RP speaker is somebody whose speech belongs to England, but cannot be pinned down to any region of England .RP has had a powerful influence on all regional varieties, but relatively few people actually speak it.

 
Now match each of the speakers to the appropriate statement. Note: there are two extra statements.

Statements

1. Mason

2. Lister

3. Maitland

4. Mansfield

5. Tweed

A. Although RP has a great impact on the regional dialects in UK, very few people actually speak it.

B. Standard English is more efficient in communicating with people from different cultures rather than those speaking other dialects.

C. Many people speak Standard English in UK.

D. The standard language varies from country to country.

E. An international standard language should be developed and used all over the world.

F. RP is the standard of the British social elite.

G. Standard English has a special position because it acts as the medium of education.