Spelling mistakes

[BrookeBond]

Has anyone noticed the amount of teenagers, and even adults, who cannot spell simple words. Does this worry anyone else or am I being picky? Surely schools are failing?

[Hellyon]

My son came home with 10 spellings to learn - I corrected 3 of them in red ink and sent them back to the 22 year old teacher! I don't think she likes me much now :-D
I don't profess to be very good at spelling or grammar as I went to school in the 70's and there was a period during which it was not considered as important as 'expressing yourself'.

I don't understand the use of text speak as, with predictive text, I often find it's fewer (;-D) keystrokes to put in the whole word.

[jake-the-peg]

On the other hand why is more acceptable to be virtually innumerate?

I lose count of people who happily confess to not being any good at maths.

And I'm not talking about mental arithmetic for your shopping (we do have calculators and tills).

Most people it seems wouldn't know a standard deviation from a hole in the ground.

Yet that's OK as long as they can write in an acceptable style.

Is it just that style is valued over substance, what you say is less important than how you say it?

[annie0000]

My son came home with a sheet to learn the 2,3 and 4 times tables.

According to the sheet, 3 times 5 = 16.

When I was at school it was 15, but times move on!

I also had to correct a teachers request for parental help for a trip. The options being:

I would/would not like to help with trip to Xxxxxxx.

I sent it back saying that I would like to help, unfortunately I can't.

The next note we received said:

I can/cannot help with the trip toYYYYYYYYY..

He alsp came home with a certificate saying that he had "lost no golden time for the year".

[Ice.Maiden]

Jake - I think the difference between being literate and numerate (although both important), is that so long as you can do the necessary maths to deal with life, then it doesn't matter at all whether you know an obtuse triangle from an isosceles one! If someone needs this information with regard to the job they're in, or hoping to get, then it matters a lot, but not being able to spell, or not knowing how to use words properly, just makes a person look ignorant. It's fine on here, for texts or when deliberately abbreviating in letters to friends, but when filling in forms, writing letters of importance, etc., a gramatically inadequate person's not going to get very far at all.

[~max~]

In my humble opinion, the problem comes from the lack of emphasis on spelling and grammar at school in the UK. I'm French, and from the age of 5, we are taught how to spell properly, get continuous spelling tests, grammar lessons...etc...And that goes on until the legal school leaving age of 16. It also helps immensely when it comes to learning foreign languages. I took Arabic at Edinburgh University, and the only students who even knew what nouns, pronouns, objects, verbs...etc were, were the foreign students!
I take pride in spelling correctly, both in French and in English, as I believe language is one of the most important foundations of society.

Now I've gone off on one...sorry! :O)

[annie0000]

I'm in Scotland and my sons, who are 7 and 6, get spelling every week and also cover nouns pronouns etc. Maybe the tide is turning! If the teachers learn to spell, then maybe the kids will have a fighting chance.

[jno]

I hope so, annie. jno jnr missed out on a first-class degree by one mark - a mark deducted from one of his essays for bad spelling. He wrote 'responsible', his tutor - at degree-level English! - thought it should have been 'responsable'. Grrrr.

[annie0000]

Hi jno - I was looking at your son's spelling wondering what was wrong with it until I read the rest of your post. That's shocking isn't it? Luckily, both my sons have good spelling, my younger son has just passed a writing test 2 and half years ahead of schedule - and he is only 6, he had to write a story on a set subject, using appropriate punctuation, spelling, complex sentences and include dialog with quotation marks. I am moderately dislexic, but I am not too bad with spelling and grammar, although there are a core group of words that I just never get my head round. I am aware of it, so usually use a spell checker - not on here though!

[jno]

glad to hear some schools are trying, annie. jno jnr didn't get much spelling education at school but does his best because he thinks (as I do) that it makes a better impression in life than if you spell wrongly. But it was astounding to find him spelling better than his English tutor. He had to dissuade me from hurtling up the motorway to slap the tutor with a wet haddock.

[derekpara]

I wish people would just answer the b888dy question and not prattle on about their little darlings.

[annie0000]

I wasn't aware that it was your thread derek - where exactly did you answer the thread in your post? You also seem to have misspelled a word, I was not aware that there were any words in the English language that mix letters with numbers - you must share your dictionary with me, I could show it to my beautiful children.

[derekpara]

True, Annie, it's not my post but I did record an answer on the 30th and offered an informed opinion. However, you are perfectly entitled to chastise me - and I am suitably reprimanded. No hard feelings !

[annie0000]

ok truce. ;0)

[Wild_Foxx]

what if there is an increasing amount of dyslexics in the world?
probably not but still....
if i spelt anything wrong please dont start on me becuase i actually am dyslexic...
:D
peace out!

[me+me+me]

i go to school, and yes, i think they're failing ALOT! i'm 14 but most people in my year are yobs!