Introducing Slang to English Language Learners S ociolinguists are interested in studying how languages are used by people and their societies in various towns and regions. These interests include English language learners’ (ELL) use of the English language and how it is affected and adjusted, depending on the situations they are in. In a context where English is taught as a foreign language, English is only taught and used in class and usually the formal use of the language that is being taught, i.e. Standard English. For instance, English learners are introduced to the ready-made textbooks and audios for speaking classes, which are supposed to provide them with great opportunities to learn how to use the language in their “real world” interactions for communication. Yet, ELLs usually go through experiences where they ind that the language they have learned in class is different from what they hear or use as they interact with native users of the language. Accordingly, they learn to “modify the way they speak” (Meyerhoff, 2011, p. 1) through the experiences they come across while interacting with English native speakers’ who use slang. ELLs’ down- ward convergence by using slang helps them gain social acceptance and construct their identity. By using slang, ELLs learn to modify their speech by using certain expressions and making changes in pronunciation and grammar. English language teachers’ aim should not be just to help ELLs learn the academic language but also to help them master the social language. It is essential to help especially college international students who come from different countries and cultures to understand and master the social and academic language since they are mostly introduced to the academic language in their countries. Jim Cummins calls these two language continua as the Basic Interpersonal Communicative Skills (BICS) and the Cog- nitive Academic Language Proiciency (CALP). BICS is the everyday language skills that are needed to communicate in day-to-day interactions whereas CALP is the formal academic learning that is needed for students’ academic success, which includes listen- ing, speaking, reading, and writing about their academic ield of study. Since college ELLs interact in various contexts and need both the academic language and social language, as an English teacher, I ind that introducing ELLs not only to formal language but also to other spoken informal varieties will be beneicial. The main point of showing them how to use other varieties of spoken language is to present to them examples of appropriate use of slang. Learning to use the informal language will prevent them from misusing or overusing slang or informal varieties. What is Slang? Slang simply is the informal language that is used in everyday interactions. It is deined as “an ever changing set of colloquial words and phrases that speakers use to establish or reinforce social identity or cohesiveness within a group or with a trend or fashion in society at large” (Eble, 1996, p. 11). Martin, Weber, and Burant (1997) claim that aggressive messages are different from slang when slang is not used with the intent to offend people (cited in Mazer & Hunt, 2008). Using slang cannot be considered as an aggressive act even though there are some slang words that might be considered offensive. It can only be considered offensive if someone intentionally said a slang word to offend another. Crystal (2003) speciied ifteen “varied functions” of slang. He indicated that number 13 is “the primary function of slang” which is “to show that one belongs to a certain school, trade, or profession, artistic or intellectual set, or social class” (p. 182). In other words, slang is used to interact or to “establish contact” (p. 182). Similarly, Mary Bucholtz (2007) indicated that slang is used to construct identity, especially youth identity. Bucholtz investigated the California teenagers’ use of slang and found that slang is used as an interpersonal source to attain speciic interactional goals. As indicated earlier, slang can be positive and negative. Mazer and Hunt (2008) specify that positive slang is the informal lan- guage that “a speaker utilizes to signal identiication with the listener” (p. 22). For instance, using words such as “cool,” “sweet,” or “awesome” is regarded as positive slang. On the other hand, negative slang is the informal language that “may be perceived as offensive by the listener” (Mazer and Hunt, 2008, p. 22). For example, using words such as “jerk,” “waste,” or “shit” are regarded as negative slang and therefore offensive. By Entisar Elsherif and Nadia Nsir Ohio TESOL Journal -- Volume 7, Number 3 6