Globalisation and concomitant social, cultural, political, and economic processes have promoted both spatial and symbolic mobility, leading to increasing linguistic complexity (e.g. Blommaert 2010; Coupland 2010), and a... [ view full abstract ]
Globalisation and concomitant social, cultural, political, and economic processes have promoted both spatial and symbolic mobility, leading to increasing linguistic complexity (e.g. Blommaert 2010; Coupland 2010), and a variety of new speakers (O’Rourke, Pujolar & Ramallo 2015). Norway has been described as a “sociolinguistic paradise”, in so far as dialectal diversity is not only tolerated but also highly valued (e.g. Trudgill 2002). This description is, however, only partially true. Levelled or mixed dialects, and new speech practices emerging in multiethnic urban areas sometimes face quite negative evaluations (Svendsen & Marzo 2015; Opsahl & Røyneland 2017).
This paper reports on a Norwegian research project investigating the role of language for social mobility. Equal access to education and labour is considered a fundamental democratic right of citizens in the Nordic welfare states. A large number of immigrants receive Norwegian language training, either in adult training courses or in introduction classes in public school. Through a combination of ethnographic and experimental approaches to language attitudes, we investigate how language constrains and shapes the capacity of individuals to change social position. We present preliminary analyses of data from 100 respondents – adults, youth, and teachers – across the main dialect areas of Norway. For the qualitative part of the study, a smaller group of respondents has been chosen.
The project examines which Norwegian varieties immigrants are taught at language courses, and which varieties they wish to learn, and why. The study compares attitudes across educational contexts, revealing differences that reinforce our understanding of the roles that language plays in processes of social mobility and individuals' possibility to take active part in the labour market. The investigation reveals the effects of 1) speaking a non-standard variety when changing social position in society, and 2) how attitudes towards, and ideas of, prestigious languages are (re)produced in various educational contexts. Language attitudes that exist among educators might affect teaching and assessment, and thus lead to discrimination of individual students, which in turn may affect students’ opportunity to advance in society (Sollid & Rindal 2015). Knowledge of these will be of importance for future facilitation of educational programs.
