And anyway, what is "correctness" of speech? It is a speech norm, that is, what is recommended by philologists and language teachers—on the whole, a pure abstraction. Let us first turn to our native language. About twenty years ago, normative speech could be heard on radio and television—announcers were specially trained to speak "correctly." Today, the "pronunciation" that fills the airwaves can drive an old-school person to a pre-heart attack state. Meanwhile, those who grew up under this trendy articulation find the pronunciation of famous announcers of the past strange.
Down with phoneticians!
Something similar is happening with the English language. Britain is a country of dialects, and although historically the speech of London and its environs was considered "the most correct," there have always been many deviations from the norm—consider the famous "Cockney," the jargon of London's lower classes. Normative, "Queen's" English, including its phonetic component—the so-called Received Pronunciation—is more the result of work by linguists and methodologists than a living language.
Until recently, mastery of "Queen's English" was considered a sign of good breeding, upbringing, and education. It was Received Pronunciation that was heard on the BBC, and it was taught in good private schools. It was also "Queen's English" that foreigners were taught. It was believed that any signs of a dialect were vulgar speech used by uneducated strata of society.
Today the situation has changed. In Britain, zealots of "cultured speech" complain that the only accent allowed to be despised and ridiculed is... Received Pronunciation. If you dare to say how ugly, say, the Birmingham accent is, you will immediately be convinced that this accent is wonderful and that regional linguistic diversity must be preserved. But everyone and their mother is ready to laugh endlessly at RP—"the silly accent of private school graduates." British journalist I. Knight in the Sunday Times once told a chilling story about how the Speaker of the House of Commons fired his secretary because her overly correct pronunciation got on his nerves...
A bit of dialectology
In general terms, modern English dialects can be classified as follows: northern dialects, subdivided into three subgroups; central dialects, subdivided into ten subgroups; eastern dialects, subdivided into five subgroups; western dialects, subdivided into two subgroups; southern dialects, subdivided into ten subgroups. We won't list them all here. It is clear that there are almost as many dialects in England alone as there are counties, and then there are Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. And they sound so different that a resident of Yorkshire can hardly understand a resident of Cornwall. What can we say about foreigners?
On the other hand, the position of "defenders of dialects" can be understood in some ways. It is a pity when some linguistic layer disappears from the face of the earth. And English dialects in recent times, despite their inherent conservatism, are increasingly being leveled under the onslaught of the so-called Estuary English—the English spoken in the Thames estuary area, i.e., in London and its surroundings. Grammatically, this dialect differs little from standard English, but into its phonetics have seeped features of Cockney that were previously forbidden for a literate person: dropping initial h ('orse instead of horse), pronouncing n instead of ng (goin' instead of going), and intrusive r where there should be none (saw-r-it instead of saw it). Roughly speaking, it is a hybrid of "Queen's" English and Cockney. Its advance has been massive: it is capturing more and more regions of Britain, sweeping away local dialects along the way. They say it has already reached Glasgow, where children now call their mother not in Glaswegian—mivver, but in London—muvver.
And that's not even Glasgow! Phoneticians from Australia's Macquarie University, who have analyzed Queen Elizabeth's Christmas speeches for many years, concluded that Her Majesty is moving further and further away from "Queen's English" each year toward the ill-fated Estuary English.
What then should a foreigner do, who despite everything is driven by a desire to speak English correctly? And what exactly does he understand by "correctness"? Naturally, the absence of a foreign accent, even if the deviations from the norm are those that an Englishman, not a Russian, Spaniard, or Chinese, can make. In language schools in Britain, you are unlikely to find a teacher who would teach you dialectal rather than normative English. Another matter is that the teacher's pronunciation may not correspond to the standards adopted at the BBC many years ago... A different matter is the local residents with whom you will have to communicate. Then you willy-nilly will learn to understand the people of Birmingham, Yorkshire, Glasgow, or Manchester. But it is not necessary to adopt the features of their speech.
Oxbridge Forever
So, we choose which region of Britain to study the language in. To begin with - good news for those who, despite all modern trends, would like to speak 'Queen's English'. There are still places where it is held in high regard! These are Cambridge and Oxford - the proximity of classical universities affects everything here, including language schools. So those who choose, say, Cambridge Academy of English will not be mistaken. This school, founded in 1975 and accredited by the British Council, is small, but it teaches English at all levels, and the range of courses is quite wide - general and business courses, English for professional purposes, for children and teenagers, preparation for Cambridge exams. Everything necessary for classes is also available - a computer room, a language laboratory, a library. People come here from more than 60 countries for various lengths of time - from two weeks to a year. The school's motto is 'England is our Classroom'. That is, it is believed that you learn the language not only at school but also outside it: the school management fully trusts the residents of Cambridge in this regard and is confident that they will not teach students anything bad.
The same can be said about Oxford. If you go to study English at King's School Oxford, you will be offered courses in general English, exam preparation, 'Academic Year', and courses for teachers (which is telling - only very good schools are allowed to teach teachers). Also children's holiday courses and pre-university preparation programs. You will live in Oxford families and study in a modern building with 16 classrooms, a lecture hall, a language laboratory, a multimedia classroom, and a library.
Don't like quiet university towns? Well, London is simply packed with language schools. We have written about London schools a lot and often, so now we will just remind you of the existence of some of them: London School of English, St Giles, Select English, Linguarama... Any London school will offer you a wide range of programs, accommodation options in a family, a dormitory, or a hotel (some also rent apartments for students) and plenty of extracurricular activities. This is where you will master London speech, that is, the notorious Estuary English in all its nuances!
In the far north
Northern dialects cause the most smiles among the English themselves; about how the residents of York or Manchester speak, no fewer teases and jokes have been invented than about the Scots - well, the latter are also northerners... When I first heard the speech of Mancunians (or, as they are also pompously called in Latin style, Mantunians), working people, 'not university graduates', to tell the truth, I initially understood only one word. An obscene one. And even then I recognized it not so much by its sound (even the Mantunians pronounced it in their own way), but rather by the frequency of use...
Nevertheless, there are language schools in the north of England. And even very good ones. At least, those who studied English there have not been caught in any dialect sins. The Anglolang school in Scarborough (Yorkshire) is quite well-known and respectable, accredited by the British Council and English UK, offers a huge range of courses, including English for executives, English plus golf, English for professional purposes, including for corporate clients, teacher training courses and pre-university preparation... The school is located in a beautiful 19th-century mansion, but inside everything is equipped with the latest educational and non-educational technology. Moreover, Scarborough is a seaside resort, albeit northern. Interestingly, some educational agents working with this school, when talking about it, try to mention the word 'Yorkshire' as little as possible, precisely because of the notorious local dialect... In my opinion, there is nothing to be ashamed of. After all, as one Irishwoman from a 'host family' rightly told her charges, you need to learn the English that people speak, not the one prescribed by textbooks... Especially since at school you won't hear the rich Yorkshire speech.
You will hear nothing out of the ordinary from the aforementioned Mantunians at the Manchester Academy of English either. Whichever course you choose - general, business, holiday, exam - you will be taught by graduates of specialized educational institutions, who also have a diploma in teaching English as a foreign language, meeting the standards set by the British Council. The director, Sandra Kaufman, who has been teaching English to foreigners all her life, also possesses numerous qualification accolades.
Why not head to the English Riviera?
To the credit of northerners, they never call their English 'the most correct'. It's a different story for southerners, whose self-esteem in this matter does not lag behind Londoners'. And, you know, I am ready to agree with them... Residents of the south coast of England do not distort words beyond recognition like northerners, do not swallow sounds like Londoners, do not 'roll their r's' like Scots, do not 'sing' like the Irish. Is their English 'correct'? I don't know, at least it is melodious and understandable. And the language schools of Brighton, Hastings, Eastbourne, Portsmouth, Bournemouth and other seaside towns are very attractive and solid. Take, for example, Anglo European School in Bournemouth, located near the center and the beach in an attractive modern building, equipped, like all self-respecting schools, with all kinds of educational equipment. The school is small, with 100 students studying at the same time, though during the holidays their number increases to 250. Courses for every taste: general, exam, intensive and super-intensive, 'Academic Year/Semester'. Accommodation - in families of friendly and talkative southerners, in the evenings - plenty of entertainment.
Here in Bournemouth, there is a school with a similar name - Anglo Continental. It is larger and more substantial: it offers both courses for teachers and English for professional purposes for a wide range of specialists, from lawyers to pilots.
And how do you like the prospect of studying in historic Hastings, where in 1066 the famous battle between the Anglo-Saxons and Normans took place? The schools EAC Hastings or Embassy CES Hastings will provide classes for any program, the sea air will give you strength and health, and the historic spirit of the city will give you a unique sense of belonging to the glorious past and culture of Britain. In fact, the history of modern England began here... Perhaps that is why Southern English seems so correct?