Students' Rights to their own language

Kelly O’Neill

English 1100 3J

September 13, 2015

Prof Young

I believe that students have the right to use their own language when discussing personal opinions. The Executive Committee of the Conference on college composition and communication found a solution to students’ rights to their own language, “We affirm strongly that teachers must have the experiences and training that will enable them to respect diversity and uphold the right of students to their own language.” However, there is a time and a place in which using our own language is appropriate. In an academic or professional setting it is necessary to speak properly and to be grammatically correct. If you are on your own time with friends, perhaps you can speak more of your own language, which may include slang, curse words or inappropriate topics that do not lend themselves to the workplace or classroom. There is a fine line between writing personally and writing inappropriately. For example, if you are writing for the school newspaper, you may write your feelings about a certain situation, but you would not speak with foul language or inappropriate content. Often times, quotes are used to get around these situations. When writing a school paper for a specific class, it is not appropriate to use your own language. This can make writing more difficult because the novice writer can most likely write with ease if it is their own language, to fully express themselves and to write with fluency. Sometimes students try to sound more intelligent by using big, fancy words. This can make their writing seem phony and almost uncomfortable. There is a balance that I would think all writers try to achieve, which is to get their point across using their own language, as much as possible, without overstepping the boundaries of what is inappropriate. When that is achieved, we get to know the writer the most. Overall, given the situation, students should have the right to express themselves through their language when the occasion is appropriate.