Hey.
At the moment I am writing an essay about which type of English (American English or British English) that should be taught in Swedish schools.
It is a discursive essay, which means I.E. that I have to have advantages and disadvantages for both sides.
So far I have not progressed very well and that is where you guys come in.
This is my opening for the essay
"Which English, American English or British English, should be taught in Sweden?
It is generally agreed that the English dialect Swedish people use the most is the American English. Sweden is basically being bombarded by advertising and movies in which most of them use American English and not British English. However, a lot of teachers prefer to use British English as their foundation in teaching. This essay will take a closer look at the two English dialects and discuss the pros and cons for teaching them in Swedish schools.
AmE1 pros
Because of the similar way of pronouncing Swedish and AmE, it is naturally less difficult to pronounce AmE than BrE2. The large amount of AmE in media, in example TV, music, computer games, students are more likely to understand AmE. Even if there are shows that uses the BrE, the AmE speaking shows are more common. Swedish students are more familiar with AmE than BrE which makes AmE become easier to them by default. A lot more people in the world are speaking with the American dialect than the British one, which makes it preferable to teach AmE in schools. When the AmE seems easier for us to learn, why complicate it?
AmE cons
The majority of schools in Sweden are teaching BrE, and there are differences in the two English dialects, which could make it harder for some students to separate them. It stands to reason that the AmE is not as proper and or formal as BrE, and it should also be remembered that AmE is a deviation of BrE, which is the original English, and therefore not the dialect that should be taught in schools. Why use the American dialect when the British one is the original?
BrE pros
BmE is the original English, which makes it essential in learning the language the way it should be learned. The spelling is more accurate and it is also considered to be more proper and formal than the American counterpart.
In Sweden the BrE has almost always been used for teaching writing and spelling, and has always been used since English was introduced to the Swedish schools, why stop now?
BrE cons
BrE is arguably more difficult to speak correctly, accordingly to some students. People in Sweden are accustomed to speaking AmE, due to the fact that most media in Sweden is AmE, and that makes BrE seem unnecessary. Why speak with a dialect that we are not used to anyway?
To summarize, BrE and AmE, similar yet different, both have their pros and cons.
One could argue that British English is more formal, proper etc. but if both dialects get the same message across, it does not really matter which English that we should or not should be using.
"
THIS IS ONLY A WORK IN PROGRESS, A DRAFT. IT IS NOT HOW THE FINAL ESSAY WILL BE WRITTEN
But it IS going to be written in the way of pros/cons in both dialects.
I want a discussion and perhaps some brainstorming to help me get somewhere, I am at a standstill at the moment.
So here's the question.
What are the advantages/disadvantages of teaching American English or British English in a non-English talking country?
Thanks beforehand.
/Nisse Rolf
Edited the essay some.
At the moment I am writing an essay about which type of English (American English or British English) that should be taught in Swedish schools.
It is a discursive essay, which means I.E. that I have to have advantages and disadvantages for both sides.
So far I have not progressed very well and that is where you guys come in.
This is my opening for the essay
"Which English, American English or British English, should be taught in Sweden?
It is generally agreed that the English dialect Swedish people use the most is the American English. Sweden is basically being bombarded by advertising and movies in which most of them use American English and not British English. However, a lot of teachers prefer to use British English as their foundation in teaching. This essay will take a closer look at the two English dialects and discuss the pros and cons for teaching them in Swedish schools.
AmE1 pros
Because of the similar way of pronouncing Swedish and AmE, it is naturally less difficult to pronounce AmE than BrE2. The large amount of AmE in media, in example TV, music, computer games, students are more likely to understand AmE. Even if there are shows that uses the BrE, the AmE speaking shows are more common. Swedish students are more familiar with AmE than BrE which makes AmE become easier to them by default. A lot more people in the world are speaking with the American dialect than the British one, which makes it preferable to teach AmE in schools. When the AmE seems easier for us to learn, why complicate it?
AmE cons
The majority of schools in Sweden are teaching BrE, and there are differences in the two English dialects, which could make it harder for some students to separate them. It stands to reason that the AmE is not as proper and or formal as BrE, and it should also be remembered that AmE is a deviation of BrE, which is the original English, and therefore not the dialect that should be taught in schools. Why use the American dialect when the British one is the original?
BrE pros
BmE is the original English, which makes it essential in learning the language the way it should be learned. The spelling is more accurate and it is also considered to be more proper and formal than the American counterpart.
In Sweden the BrE has almost always been used for teaching writing and spelling, and has always been used since English was introduced to the Swedish schools, why stop now?
BrE cons
BrE is arguably more difficult to speak correctly, accordingly to some students. People in Sweden are accustomed to speaking AmE, due to the fact that most media in Sweden is AmE, and that makes BrE seem unnecessary. Why speak with a dialect that we are not used to anyway?
To summarize, BrE and AmE, similar yet different, both have their pros and cons.
One could argue that British English is more formal, proper etc. but if both dialects get the same message across, it does not really matter which English that we should or not should be using.
"
THIS IS ONLY A WORK IN PROGRESS, A DRAFT. IT IS NOT HOW THE FINAL ESSAY WILL BE WRITTEN
But it IS going to be written in the way of pros/cons in both dialects.
I want a discussion and perhaps some brainstorming to help me get somewhere, I am at a standstill at the moment.
So here's the question.
What are the advantages/disadvantages of teaching American English or British English in a non-English talking country?
Thanks beforehand.
/Nisse Rolf
Edited the essay some.
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