Hey I don't want to come across as patronising or pedantic but I think the standard of English in these forums is pretty shoddy. I know it isn't everyone's first language and I'm not trying to have a go, I just wondered whether people care about being understood. I'm just as bad as the next man so I tend to use http://dictionary.cambridge.org/ when I'm not sure.
Does anyone else care about this?
Cheers,
John.
Although personally I tend to set myself high standards, I don't necessarily think that others should have to meet them. These forums are all about interaction and that should be free to everyone on whatever level of communication they can manage.
On a seperate issue, I think everyone should strive to educate themselves to a minimum level; good grammar and spelling are invaluable as tools in life. 🙂
Originally posted by StarrmanUm, that's 'sepArate'...please tell me that was a deliberate attempt at irony or something...😲😉😀
Although personally I tend to set myself high standards, I don't necessarily think that others should have to meet them. These forums are all about interaction and that should be free to everyone on whatever level of communication they can manage.
On a seperate issue, I think everyone should strive to educate themselves to a minimum level; good grammar and spelling are invaluable as tools in life. 🙂
Originally posted by ReelEmInReidTo be honest... it gets on my nerves a lot. I don't really care about little typos or anything, but there are several people in these forums who's posts I have to read a couple of times before I have any idea what they are talking about. See, English isn't my first language either, but I think that (apart from the punctuation maybe) I don't make too many mistakes, so it should be possible for other people to post in a form that everyone else can understand too.
Hey I don't want to come across as patronising or pedantic but I think the standard of English in these forums is pretty shoddy. I know it isn't everyone's first language and I'm not trying to have a go, I just wondered whether people care about being understood. I'm just as bad as the next man so I tend to use http://dictionary.cambridge.org/ when I'm not sure.
Does anyone else care about this?
Cheers,
John.
On the other hand... why should I care about other people's spelling? If they can't be bothered to check their spelling... why should I be bothered reading those posts? If the grammar is so bad I don't get the meaning, I always think it can't be that important, can it? . Honestly, if you have something to say, make sure other people can understand you!
Angie 😕
Originally posted by angie88Cough Cough RBHill among others.
To be honest... it gets on my nerves a lot. I don't really care about little typos or anything, but there are several people in these forums who's posts I have to read a couple of times before I have any idea what they are talking about. See, English isn't my first language either, but I think that (apart from the punctuation maybe) I don't make too many ...[text shortened]... Honestly, if you have something to say, make sure other people can understand you!
Angie 😕
Originally posted by ReelEmInReidJohn,
Hey I don't want to come across as patronising or pedantic but I think the standard of English in these forums is pretty shoddy. I know it isn't everyone's first language and I'm not trying to have a go, I just wondered whether people care about being understood. I'm just as bad as the next man so I tend to use http://dictionary.cambridge.org/ when I'm not sure.
Does anyone else care about this?
Cheers,
John.
I seems to me that the standard of English in the forums varies greatly depending on who is writing. We have examples of both the very best and the very worst. Perhaps allowances can be made for the younger contributors.
Nonetheless, it may be a symptom of my advancing years (33 and counting), but it really does seem to me that, in England at least, basic standards of literacy are in decline.
I teach psychology in a university. In that capacity, I prescribe and assess undergraduate essays. Whatever one would expect about the population at large, one would expect that undergraduates--who have opted for a relatively intellectual lifestyle and who have attained ample qualifiaction points from prior examinations--should know and be able to follow elementary rules of grammar and punctuation.
In my experience, however, over half of them cannot.
For example, the offend half cannot consistently use full stops (that "periods" for you Americans) in the correct way, insisting instead on writing meandering, stream-of-consciousness sentences that express a number of unrelated or contrasting propositions. It's enervating in the extreme to read them. Maybe it's a symptom of texting, I don't know. Even worse, this year, four out of five of students I supervise did not even know the difference between a noun and a verb! I was taken aback. We are not talking about the ability to distinguish the dative from the accusative case here, just nouns from verbs. Am I really being unrealistic to think that this should be common knowledge?
If you think it's bad here,try to read this.It's a schoolassignment,this guy is in his last year before university(if he decides to go,that is),he would be 18-19 years old,and has been thaught english for at least 6 years.The assignment was to write a short play about a family.I don't think any brit or american can make much of it,it was hard for me,and I speak his native language!
"Ann sits in the hook of the chamber.She is striking Burts brook.The radio stands on.Suddenly she hears a lawight in the gang. The door goes open. There stud Burt.
Ann: Haha, there are you. It is becans tide. From where come you flierefloyter?
Burt: That goes you not on!
Ann is up her toot getrapped.
She thinks she will fall fromherself, so she goes lying longout on the sofa and begins to snick.
Burt: Stop, hold up off I shall give you a vige on your smool.
That is too much for Ann. She flies right from the sofa and balls her fist.
Ann: I can no longer stand you out! I will take another man.
Burt: Pfoe, that shall me not spite. I have raids another leaf.
White like a like Ann falls fourover on the tapite.
Burt wrives in his hands from joy.
He does the door open and smites her after him too.
In the room, Ann comes to herself.
She seat her very bad out and she thinks lout up: 'Ann, I will make myselffrom side'.
She goes in the kitchen, takes a mess from the shoyf, but when she thinks of the blood and the pain, she has twayfels.
Ann: 'I make my not from cant for a type like Burt!
I will leaver stay an old vrayster the rest of my life and will never merry again'.
The public can see Ann go and sit on the stool and take her strikework in her hands.
The lights go out and the gordines go too..."
Originally posted by PawnokeyholePerhaps your students are just lazy when it comes to writing properly; I get annoyed if I misspell things or punctuate badly, but some people are almost indifferent to their use of language. Alternatively, it may suggest deeper problems with their ability to structure arguments, ie they don't really understand how their ideas fit together, which is something that absolutely must be corrected before they graduate.
John,
I seems to me that the standard of English in the forums varies greatly depending on who is writing. We have examples of both the very best and the very worst. Perhaps allowances can be made for the younger contributors.
Nonetheless, it may be a symptom of my advancing years (33 and counting), but it really does seem to me that, in England a ...[text shortened]... uns from verbs. Am I really being unrealistic to think that this should be common knowledge?
As regards knowing the difference between a noun and a verb, they may know the distinction, but be unfamiliar with the words 'noun' and 'verb' because they weren't formally taught grammar at school.
A discussion forum where I used to be active had the same broad spectrum of writing ability that we see here at RHP. A retired military aviator was especially talented and witty. He wielded a mighty keyboard when it came to retorts, too. Last I heard, he was working on a freelance novel that he hopes will be published.
I think everybody's inclined to mispell the odd word here and there; misuse the occasional punctuation mark and mistakingly use comma's when they're not needed...
I have no problems with these little glitches of human imperfection.
However there are a few writers who seem to have grave spelling problems. I can understand this, there are many reasons why people have poor grammar.
But, nowadays, with WORD for example, you can run a spell and grammar check over every post you are going to type.
I would suggest unto those who are constantly failing to bring across their point of view, because people pick up on the use of language rather than the argument, that they should try-run their post in WORD first. This way their message will be clearer.