We’ve come a long way since Burns, both societally and linguistically, and using literature with a more modern and updated take on the Scots language can better help with both language acquisition and help students feel comfortable using the Scots they speak at home in the classroom.
Children are no longer beaten for speaking Scots, but the cultural hangover associated with this kind of history still remains. Scots speakers, teachers and students alike will often codeswitch to avoid seeming unintelligent due to prevailing cultural attitudes which put SSE (Scottish Standard English) as the pinnacle of verbal and written expression….
We owe it to the next generation to set them up with the tools to communicate, and for many people, the validation of existing knowledge and skills using the Scots language will enable them to expand both their working knowledge of the language itself, and its relationship to English as a beautiful and useful sister language.
Remember friends: Scots is for life, not just for January.