Drugs and Bad Language: A View from the Secondary School Classroom

ABSTRACT

The use of ‘street vernacular’ and ‘bad’ language is now a familiar feature of classroom and corridor interactions in secondary (11–18) schools. The initial experiences of trainee teachers when first visiting schools can, however, be varied and sometimes troubling. This paper uses selected examples to explore some aspects of the complex linguistic life of classrooms and argues for a more explicit understanding of teenage vernacular and the ways in which this can be managed by teachers. Emphasis is also given to the importance of developing critical insight into the social dynamic of language and a concomitant understanding of the ways in which discourse features are appropriated and exploited by commercial media.

Lily and Rob were sitting at the table. Rob was shaking something on to a strip of foil.

‘Oh, yeah,’ said Gemma. Rob handed the foil to Lily. She lit a match and held it under the foil. There was this thick, sweet smell and a curl of white smoke. Lily held the foil to her mouth and ‘Glop!’ she said. She sucked down that curl of white smoke and clamped her lips down. And held her breath for ages. Then she breathed slowly out. She smiled like a snake. ‘Now I feel good,’ she said…”

(Junk, Burgess (1996) p. 127)