Letter: Standard English is common sense

THE important difference between dialects, Standard English and accents lies at the heart of the muddled, class-driven discussion about the National Curriculum Council's proposals.

Regional dialects differ from Standard English in sound system, syntax and vocabulary and should not be confused with accents. These are about geographical and social differences in pronunciation only. Standard English, that is, grammatically correct English, comes in a variety of accents.

Nobody wants every British citizen to sound like the Queen but everybody has the right to be taught to speak grammatically correct (Standard) English, with whatever accent.

Astrid Treherne

London SW3