The Role of Sociolinguistics in English Teaching at College

王文英

【Abstract】Language is an important instrument for communication， which carries the cultural information and relates to the social structures and norms.As linguistics of real society， sociolinguistics has an inspirational aspect to English teaching at college.The essence of its theories should be applied to teaching， with the social context considered.Only through this way can students improve their sociocultural consciousness and communication ability， and become qualified foreign language speakers.

【Key words】Sociolinguistics； English teaching at college； Accommodation Theory

1.Related theories

Sociolinguistics is interdisciplinary， which studies the covariance between linguistic variables and social variables.Gender， age， religion， education and status are all important social variables.Learning English is more than grasping the basic language knowledge.Studying English out of social context is harmful for the harmonious intercultural communication and the improvement of communication skills.

1.1Communicative competence

Canale and Swain（1980）conclude that there are four aspects of communicative competence， which are linguistic competence， pragmatic competence， discourse competence and strategic competence.The first competence is concerned with knowledge of language， both form and meaning.Second one is about how to use language appropriately in social context.Third one refers to the ability of creating coherent written and oral text.The last one relates to communication strategies.

1.2Accommodation theory

Giles（1979） put forward the Accommodation Theory， which indicates that a person adjusts their way of speaking to make it sound more like or less like the opposite sides way of speaking.The former is called convergence and the latter divergence.Converging ones way of speech is often perceived as a polite communication strategy， which could make the addressee fell more comfortable.

2.Sociolinguistic study and English teaching in college

After graduation some of the college students will commit to foreign affairs， and some of them will teach English.Only they are well educated could improve the English level of younger generation.English teachers at college should apply the sociolinguistic theories in classroom teaching and they could take actions from following four aspects.

2.1Improve students language sensitivity

Teachers should help students improve the language sensitivity by a series of activities.Through all kinds of activities students should be aware that there are more than one varieties， that what they learn is only one of them.As English learners they should be able to understand most of the varieties.Every variety is equal and students cant have prejudice against other varieties speakers.Students should build up a correct concept of language.

2.2Emphasize intercultural communication

Sociolinguistics is studied under social context， thus the teaching should help students adjust field， mode and tenor based on the context.Students could put themselves in others shoes and they have better not make prediction from their angle.Respecting other culture， religion and value is the basis of communication.

2.3Improve communication competence

In college English teaching should cover common knowledge， such as communication rituals and table manners in western world.How to obey the social protocols should become a focus so as how to make request， apology and so on.Case study ought to be good example in the classroom.Out of the classroom， every opportunity of talking with foreigners is valuable.The process of improving communicative competence is dynamic， and relying on theory is barely enough.

3.Conclusions

Sociolinguistics enriches the teaching content and avoids the rigid mode of teaching.It pays more attention to foster students communication skills and ability and at the same times makes students realize that knowing how to talk and how to talk appropriately are different.

The terms listed in this article， such as communication competence， language variety， are only part of the essence of sociolinguistic study， and there are more to explore to use for college teaching.Teachers should constantly update their knowledge and make full use of sociolinguistic theories.

Reference：

[1]Hymes D.On communicative competence[J].Sociolinguistics， 1972.

[2]Canale，M.&Swain，M.1980.Theoretical Bases of Communicative Approaches to Second Language Teaching and Testing [J].Applied Linguistis.

[3]刘正光.言语适应理论研究述评[J].语言文字应用，2001，02.