Job Discussion Forums

[wangdaning]

Fact is, unless you can speak in English that is intelligible and standard you will be looked at as lazy in most academic/professional situations, unless English is not your first language.

The same thing goes on here in China, and probably most of the world where they have regional differences. If someone wants to be successful working in more than one region they need to speak something that can be deployed in a standardized way.

Oddly, for the native speaker it might be advantageous, anywhere, to be familiar with the way people talk in different regions you travel to or work in. If you want to do business in a region where non-standard English is prevalent, it is helpful to be able to use it of course. The type of English used will always differ with situation and audience, and I see no reason why someone able to use that ability should not be seen as having an intelligence someone who can't lacks.

That said, some people are just bad with language, and that does not make them stupid. I think everyone would agree. I can usually interpret the most absurdly constructed sentences, but I know that many of them come from people who are quite bright. The problem comes when someone knows it causes problems to speak non-standard English, but refuses to make themselves clear. At that point, the stubbornness can often border on stupidity.