SIGHS OF COCKEY ACCENT

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16736, 18 May 1922, Page 5

SIGHS OF COCKEY ACCENT

NEW ZEALAND DIALECT. - [Per Press Association.] ■WELLINGTON. May 17. At the Secondary Schools Conference Air Renner, Wellington College, said there was danger of New Zealanders’ pronunciation of some words becoming faulty, almost to Cockney. He said that “ praise ” was pronounced as “ prize,” “ my ” as “ moy,” “ now ” as “ noow,” “go” as “ goM r ,” etc. After a lengthy speech he moved: “ That the attention of all examining bodies, the University and all educational authorities be called to tho widespread prevalence of wrong methods of speech and pronunciation, and this association request such bodies to take action by means of suitable training methods, viva voce tests and all means in their power, to foster a standard system of ipronounciation and thus check the growth of any New Zealand

dialect-.’ ’ The motion was seconded by Air E. D. J. Hercus (Wellington). who pointed out that the late head master of Wellington College, Air Firth, had conducted tests with his most promising classes and had found the standard of diction unsatisfactory. Tlio president, Air R. AI. Laing, ALA., said he preferred the pronunciation generally heard in the North of England to that of the middle and higher classes in England. Air James Drummond. Chief Inspector of secondary schools, said that though he did not take the same, gloomy view as Air Renner he had noticed signs of Cockney accent, but he had never com© across anything really bad in any particular school. Some vowels were obviously mispronounced. Far more attention to correct pronunciation seemed to bo paid in girls’ schools than in boys’ schools. The fault seemed to be principally in lip laziness. The best test of pronunciation was not reading but oral composition. The question as to whether dialect was really a bad thing was open to debate. AYhilo he thought that Air Renner had overstated the case in his opening remarks he agreed that there was some need for improvement of diction in schools. ±he motion was carried unanimously.