American words and spellings not corrected in UK schools

[Fifiplays]

I find that schools no longer correct pupils when they use American English words and spellings in schools. For example, 'Airplane' (Aeroplane), 'Regular' (ordinary), 'Cotton candy' (candy floss), 'Program (when not a computer) etc etc. Does anyone have a good experience of schools being viglilent to this?

Ironically, I think you mean 'vigilant'...

Why would schools correct language usage that is correct?

These examples are a reminder that our language is evolving . It's a small world, and people find those spellings more appropriate. I like them !

I use it as a teaching point. Eg the difference between colour and color.

Several years ago one of my DC came home with the usual spelling list to practice one of which was sidewalk.

But it's not correct? Airplane is incorrect. Program is incorrect. I can accept the use of garbage instead of rubbish as it is an alternative word, ditto cotton candy or regular, but not actually incorrect spellings of words. You wouldn't expect to pass a French exam by spelling words wrong so why is it OK in English?

Practice instead of practise (as an action) is the same issue.

Why do you think this is the case? I've definitely corrected cotton candy at least twice this academic year (children quite often use it in figurative language).

Exactly. Practice is the noun

I think airplane is considered acceptable internationally; aeroplane would be considered unusual but not wrong in the USA. Don't people generally say "plane", though?

Cotton candy should be candy floss in the UK.

Not sure about regular - it is in usage in the UK, as ordinary is in the USA - but I may be missing the specific context that you mean.

Is your issue with "program" that it should, as a noun, be "programme"? I questioned someone on this very recently and was told that "program" is now UK standard.

But it is correct for the majority of English speakers?

Language evolves, and the history of how spelling in English has evolved in respective geographies is fascinating. American English tends to be far more phonetically aligned than British English - maybe it’s time the British adopted the more rational American approach to spelling 😁

in all seriousness, I am an American who works in the UK serving a global clientele. We switch between the UK and American English based on client preference. It really isn’t a major issue for me or my team, and if you want to work outside of the UK you need to be aware of differences.

educationally, there are more important issues than maintaining the purity of British English.

Practice? 🤦🏻‍♀️😂

Because they are not incorrect. The best thing about English is that it is a living, dynamic language which evolves based on usage, not what some fusty old institution dictates (as is the case for French and Spanish).

Language is about communication, and communication is not hindered by saying airplane instead of aeroplane or whatever it was. Children should be allowed to choose whether they want to use one usage or another.

Exactly. If YouTube and Netflix make cotton candy the preferred usage in the UK then no amount of teacher corrections are going to change that. You’re trying to hold back the tide if you try.

By that rationale we can all just spell things however we like because dialects all over the world differ? I realise that the English language isn't protected from change and we need children to understand the difference but if spelling is going to be part of the curriculum there needs to be a baseline from which we work.

Yeah. Also, American spelling is much smarter.

There are a far greater number of American English speakers than British English. People, including students, can choose to use either form interchangeably.

🙄

I wonder if the age of the teacher is relevant. I would correct all of those as a teacher in my forties, but perhaps those words are used more widely by younger people. I’m not sure.

God, it drives me utterly mad! Such a bloody shame to see American English creeping into our society more and more. Some of my most disliked terms include:

Gotten (got)
Principal (for Head teacher)
High school (senior school)
Movies (films)
French fries (chips)
Garbage (rubbish)
Candy (sweets/chocolate)
Cookies (biscuits) And yes, I'm aware that some biscuits are branded as cookies, it's the general use of the term that I don't like.

This is such a weird comment. You do realise English is a mish-mash of other languages and that language naturally evolves?

I’ve noticed this increasingly in books written by English authors & set in England, too. It doesn’t spoil my enjoyment, it just seems weird - words like ‘faucet’, ‘nightstand’ and ‘takeout’ from someone who’s lived all their life in Cumbria, or a middle-aged man from the Home Counties saying something like ‘Say, everyone, I’ve stopped by to…’

I don’t know whether the authors do it without noticing because evolving language, or whether they’re encouraged to prioritise the American English market.

I can't get too worked up about this, and I'm a language teacher. Quite a lot of students at my school speak English (very well) as a second language and many come from families who speak several languages and may have learned English in a more international or U.S.-skewed context.

But these are not examples of language evolving. There are already words in BE for these things. It's just people wanting to sound "cool".

If people spend do much time watching Youtube (etc) that they start speaking AE even though they live in Britain it's definitely time to cut down!

Interesting, this makes alot of sense

Airplane is more logical than aeroplane- it’s airport now and not aerodrome!