accent on the page

In Serving ESL Students Severino (citing Leki) states that much like L2 speech, L2 writing will likely have an "accent".  I feel that this is a concept that must be brought to the attention of all professors in any departments  in which users of non standard varieties of  English write/participate (which is to say the majority of departments, if not all).
In spoken language we encounter accent both among those who speak English as an additional language, as well as dialects (regional or cultural) across groups of native English speakers.  The approach I have always assumed working with spoken language and second language learners is that the goal for pronunciation is not "native", rather it is comprehensibility without distraction or extreme effort on the part of the listener.
However, in writing, it seems that professors expect "error free" and "native like" (meaning "standard", which ultimately means "white").  Why is this not questioned in writing to the extent that it would be in spoken language?
I assume it has to do with the nature of written language (permanency, potential for publication), as well as the elevation of the literary form in the academy.  However, ultimately I think we must move toward an approach in higher education that sees accent on the page as variety rather than error.

Comments

  1. UnknownJanuary 28, 2018 at 1:18 PM

    I thought this was an important point too. I had to email a professor who criticized two students’ papers and encouraged them to work on their “second language” in the writing center. Both students were, in fact, native English speakers; they learned English, Hindi, and their regional dialect concurrently as infants. The “errors” the professor wanted addressed were because they knew “British English.” It was outrageously frustrating, but I don’t know how to address it!

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  2. UnknownJanuary 29, 2018 at 8:31 PM

    I agree with this as well. I do understand a need for consistency, but I'm not sure if that's what you mean. Today when I was explaining the convention for introducing a quotation, I gave a student several options and they asked me to repeat just one so they could write it down. I realize this made it easier for them, and I realize formulas can be useful. But I felt conflicted with myself because my point was not to write the paper for the student, or make the student think there was only one right way to introduce a quotation, but a convention with several options was more than the student seemed able to entertain. It ended up seeming a bit stilted, but perhaps it's a building block.

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