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Hi everyone! Well, my computer has been down.. I just had the enjoyment of reading all of the replies and thoughts! Oh my!! Well, Autumn.. my husband also wondered if maph was a math/physics course .. no, my problem is what some of you mentioned.. why, if she is teaching children, is she/they not pronouncing the core subjects correctly? Thats all.. no, no speech problems-or lisps. I am not sending my son to somebody's grandmother to teach my son, nor am I sending him to the local corner market.. just didn't know if anyone else came across this?
By chance are many of these teachers African-American? I know that I have heard many Southern African-Americans pronouce "math" that way. Does not have anything to do with degree of education, I don't think, just how you grew up pronouncing something. The comparision to Brooklyn or NH accents are valid.....some people that grew up in small towns and have not traveled much out of this region, may not have changed their accents considerably. What really bothers me is the OP's assumption that the teachers are not "good" because they pronounce things differently.
I agree with the poster who said that if you hear "maph" or "axe" at Walmart then you just ignore it. But college-educated teachers have an obligation to speak correct English and this in no way reflects on those with distinct regional accents. People from Boston just can't help saying cah and cahkey (my mother was from Boston and I was born in Cambridge) but "maph" doesn't fall into that category. I would be horrified if my child came home from school telling me that she had "maph" homework to do when I had sent her there saying math. It is the same carelessness of people who pronounce the state where Boston is located as MassaTUsetts.
Personally I say math and I think that is going to be the way most natives here pronounce it. I'm still sticking by my point that just because the OP heard "maph", doesn't mean that is the way it was pronounced.
Stepping back for a moment, lets say that a lot of them did say "maph"... people don't just make up dialects, they learn them. It happens with children and even with adults once they've been transplanted long enough. How is this different from MASS residents saying "Cah". Why does someone from Boston get a pass for pronouncing "r" as "h" while someone here pronounces "th" as "ph" and does not. Both would be learned and neither "can help it" as you say.
It is hard to believe that "numerous" people at Leesville Middle literally used the word "maph". It makes more sense that a person from a different region where different accents are prevalent just heard it that way. Nonetheless, one region's mispronunciations are no more correct than the others. It may only seem that way because you're more familiar with one than the other.
I agree with the poster who said that if you hear "maph" or "axe" at Walmart then you just ignore it. But college-educated teachers have an obligation to speak correct English and this in no way reflects on those with distinct regional accents. People from Boston just can't help saying cah and cahkey (my mother was from Boston and I was born in Cambridge) but "maph" doesn't fall into that category. I would be horrified if my child came home from school telling me that she had "maph" homework to do when I had sent her there saying math. It is the same carelessness of people who pronounce the state where Boston is located as MassaTUsetts.
If you really want to see a good head of steam come out my husband's ears, just say Origone. I've even heard newscasters pronounce it this way. West Coasters get it right as well as my hubby, an Orygun native.
Stepping back for a moment, lets say that a lot of them did say "maph"... people don't just make up dialects, they learn them. It happens with children and even with adults once they've been transplanted long enough. How is this different from MASS residents saying "Cah". Why does someone from Boston get a pass for pronouncing "r" as "h" while someone here pronounces "th" as "ph" and does not. Both would be learned and neither "can help it" as you say.
Well said. I totally agree. What bothers me is the OP's assumption that, just because people were talking in this dialect that they were not good teachers. I am so tired of people assuming that people that speak in strong Southern accents are stupid. They would be incensed if we assumed someone was stupid cause they mispronounced "cah".
I'd like to recomment the following book by Robert Hobbs - Teach yourself Transatlantic: theatre speech for actors. This is a book that can be used to teach yourself a non-regional dialect. It may be unfortunate, but people do sound uneducated when they mispronounce words. I don't think it is a problem to preserve regional speech, however, those in education should be held to a higher standard. Just as I would expect them to be held to a higher standard when teaching math or any subject.
I'd like to recomment the following book by Robert Hobbs - Teach yourself Transatlantic: theatre speech for actors. This is a book that can be used to teach yourself a non-regional dialect. It may be unfortunate, but people do sound uneducated when they mispronounce words. I don't think it is a problem to preserve regional speech, however, those in education should be held to a higher standard. Just as I would expect them to be held to a higher standard when teaching math or any subject.
While I agree 100% with your position I must remind you that it is possible for you to PAY to have your child learn correct pronunciation outside of school. If their future SAT scrores are not important then tutoring is not necessary. It is not reasonable for public schools to do it right from the start. If they did then the entire tutoring industry would collapse. If having a teacher mispronounce words bothers you then you can hire a tutor. There are companies for just that purpose. Please find attached a link as an example.
WordCommand Reviews (http://www.wordcommand.com/reviews.htm - broken link)
On the other hand you could get a schedule change. Hmmmmm Maph is where on the SAT test?
Please understand I believe schools should do it right as they are schools and do it right from the start. Some of this was tongue in cheek?
"Pissghetti" was the funny way the 4 or 5 year old girl across the street pronouned the spagetti when I was growing up. We all chuckled about it, including her mom. But perhaps it relates to "maph." It is easier to pronouce "pissghetti" than spagetti, "maph" than math, and "libary" than library. Maybe because the pronunciation is easier and often used by a young child, there is a tendency for it to remain as an alternate, incorrect pronunciation.
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