"It really doesn't matter, does it?"

[swimmermom3]

My husband was recently lamenting that most of the communications that he receives at work are poorly written. "How bad can it be?" I asked. His answer was that it was bad enough that he spent extra time out of his day checking for clarification that could have been fixed by basic punctuation. A subordinate told him, "It really doesn't matter, does it?"

 

This morning I received this e-mail from my son's high school:

 

Forwarded from the Athletic office at School!

Congratulations to our Varsity Boys Swim Team and Varsity Dance Team they were both in the Top Ten Dairy Farmers Academic Awards for the State of ---------!!!!!!

The Boys Swim Team placed 6th with a 3.59 GPA and the Dance Team placed 10th with a 3.42 GPA.

Our Girls Swim Team and Varsity Cheer Leaders was also over a 3.0 GPA and are on the Dairy Farmers Academic Awards list. Go to ----.org and check out how well are Winter Teams did and be sure to let these Athlete's know how special they are because they know how important their grades are and work very hard to keep them above a 3.0

 

Thanks

Athletic Office

 

 

:tongue_smilie:It does matter. It really does matter. This e-mail says to me that if the school is not capable of sending out an e-mail with appropriate punctuation, let alone grammar, then they are not capable of educating my child. This is not a slam the public school thread because the communications my husband showed me from his work look exactly the same. In fact, I am painfully aware that sometimes my writing on this forum looks somewhat similar as well, depending on what kind of day I am having.

 

Does it matter to you how your writing appears in a public place? Do you judge others by what they write and how they write? What are forgivable mistakes and what ones bother you and why? Would you tolerate one of your children writing in the same fashion that you do if you are more relaxed about your writing? For example, if you choose to never capitalize "I" or the beginning of sentences, do you let your kids do the same?

 

 

 

 

[Gooblink]

Oy.

 

One of the girls who used to work for us earned a degree in marketing and business communication and used grammar worse than that.

 

Unbelievable.

 

It does matter - it should matter, anyway. I'm sure I'm guilty of many grammar offenses, but I do try to learn and improve.

[prairiebird]

.

 

Does it matter to you how your writing appears in a public place? Do you judge others by what they write and how they write?

 

 

 

One of the reasons I pulled the kids from school was that so many of the parent-teacher communications were just completely ridiculous. All notes from the school- they didn't do email- came home in English and Spanish, and the English would be spelled wrong, missing punctuation etc. I don't know how well the Spanish grammar appeared since I don't know it. For me, it made a huge deal. I judged the school because if the teacher couldn't write a coherent note to me, how could I trust her to educate my child?

[Heidi @ Mt Hope]

Yes, it matters.

 

Everyone (sender and receiver) benefits when thoughts are communicated clearly. This means properly using the tools of punctuation and correct spelling.

 

Are there times when it doesn't matter? Sure. I don't care if friends capitalize on their facebook statuses, for instance. But in professional communications, such as the notice from the Athletic Department? Yes, it matters.

 

~ Linda (who is a self-confessed grammar snob)

 

:iagree:

[Hwin]

It does matter in the professional world! However, if Facebook and texting are 99% of your written communication, then you are probably getting lots of practice in appearing illiterate.

[waa510]

I tend to be much more critical of obviously awful spelling (I'm a natural speller), but some of us (ahem, like me) had barely any grammar in school!! So I am sure there are things that I write on here and elsewhere that make others with a phenomenal grammar background inwardly cringe. I hope that my grammar knowledge and application can transform as I teach my girls because I'm sure it's pitiful. I was, however, taught possessives and homophones over and over so those are deeply ingrained in me and it bugs me when I get a card in the mail from dh's family writing 'Your getting so big' to my girls:glare:. Way to go, MIL!

 

Edit: I wanted to add that it really does matter to me a great deal. I am dead-set on my kids getting a rigorous grammar education as I think having poor grammar/spelling skills can often be interpreted as one being poorly educated in a professional setting.

Edited March 1, 2011 by waa510

[elise1mds]

I am my own worst editor, and I try not to make too many mistakes. I'm sure there are days when I screw up royally, but I think by and large I do pretty well. I can tolerate a lot in other people, because I know most people don't consider writing as important a skill as I do, but there is still a line between the odd error and blatant ignorance/apathy. I have one friend who spells phonetically, and I honestly don't think she's ever heard of the word 'homophone.' You have to read everything she types out loud to understand it, and even then sometimes my friends and I have to call one another to attempt a joint translation. She's a sweet woman, and I don't think she's learning disabled in any way (I could be wrong), but I will admit that I question her intelligence because of her poor writing skills. I simply like to see things well-written.

 

(I should add I'm the type to correct editing errors I find in books that I own. I simply can't help it.)

[RoughCollie]

This e-mail says to me that if the school is not capable of sending out an e-mail with appropriate punctuation, let alone grammar, then they are not capable of educating my child.

 

It says to me that the person who wrote that email may not be capable of teaching grammar to my child.

 

I think that using proper grammar and punctuation in any business related writing is important. I would be embarrassed and take steps to correct the problem if an employee of mine needed help with that.

Edited March 1, 2011 by RoughCollie

[Ali in OR]

I'm on the mailing list for a person who sells a certain line of products as her at-home business. I cannot even read her messages. The run-on sentences hurt my brain as I try to figure out what she is trying to say. I just don't even read them now.

[dakarimom5]

It matters to me. When I receive something from the school saying, "Homework is to remind the children of stuff we done did" that says the teacher is uneducated, at least to me. When people answer the phone or send an email to a business with incorrect grammer that shows either a lack of education or a lack of care about how they present themselves.

 

 

I know that I sometimes misuse punctuation, but I am trying to rise above my lack of education when it comes to grammer.

[Bootsie]

Yes, it matters, and it goes far beyond whether the person appears literate, intelligent, etc. I got the following in an email yesterday:

 

 

 

One parent signed her student up today and will be on this flight; the return flight still has seats available so she'll fly home with the rest of the group.

 

Who will be on the flight? The author of the email meant that the child will be on the flight, not the parent. The entire meaning is different. If you were basing your decision on letting your child go on this field trip on the fact that a parent would be on the flight, you would be incorrect.

 

I get very tired of having to guess what the author meant to say. There is a reason for grammar.

[OH_Homeschooler]

It was an individual who wrote that, not the school. And not to fall back on stereotypes, but it came from the athletic office, not the English department. I fully agree with the gist of your post.

 

But I take issue with your statement

This e-mail says to me that if the school is not capable of sending out an e-mail with appropriate punctuation, let alone grammar, then they are not capable of educating my child.

 

It was not the SCHOOL that sent this email, and it was not an English teacher. It could have been an administrative assistant with possibly a year of post-high school training who wrote that message, or maybe a coach. Are you expecting the coach to teach kids proper grammar? I believe that if you have a college degree then you should know how to write grammatically, and I assume high school coaches have college degrees. But unfortunately, college education does not guarantee that someone will write well. This is true in public school, business, politics, everywhere.

 

As you pointed out, we all have bad days and screw up now and then, and we are educators. But I happen to see some appalling grammar here sometimes. I worry more about the education of the children whose parents ARE teaching grammar and every other subject under the sun but cannot post a complete sentence here (and I'm not talking about the occasional screw-up, I'm talking about some people I've seen post over and over again).

 

And yes, even in a casual place such as this, I believe grammar does matter. I view these boards as a public form of communication. The way a person writes here may not accurately reflect how they communicate professionally, but that's all we have to go on. Personally, I feel like if I let my writing skills go even in a casual message board setting, then eventually I'll stop seeing the importance of proper grammar in all settings.

[Celia]

Yes, it matters! That would really bother me, especially coming from a school.

 

This week when I was driving home, there was a drive-thru oil change place hiring. On their billboard the sign read "Now Hiring Will Trian". My immediate thought was, if that's not changed by tomorrow, I don't think I'll be trusting them to fix my car!

[Heidi @ Mt Hope]

It was an individual who wrote that, not the school. And not to fall back on stereotypes, but it came from the athletic office, not the English department. I fully agree with the gist of your post.

 

But I take issue with your statement

 

It was not the SCHOOL that sent this email, and it was not an English teacher. It could have been an administrative assistant with possibly a year of post-high school training who wrote that message, or maybe a coach. Are you expecting the coach to teach kids proper grammar? I believe that if you have a college degree then you should know how to write grammatically, and I assume high school coaches have college degrees. But unfortunately, college education does not guarantee that someone will write well. This is true in public school, business, politics, everywhere.

 

As you pointed out, we all have bad days and screw up now and then, and we are educators. But I happen to see some appalling grammar here sometimes. I worry more about the education of the children whose parents ARE teaching grammar and every other subject under the sun but cannot post a complete sentence here (and I'm not talking about the occasional screw-up, I'm talking about some people I've seen post over and over again).

 

And yes, even in a casual place such as this, I believe grammar does matter. I view these boards as a public form of communication. The way a person writes here may not accurately reflect how they communicate professionally, but that's all we have to go on. Personally, I feel like if I let my writing skills go even in a casual message board setting, then eventually I'll stop seeing the importance of proper grammar in all settings.

 

Yes, the email was from an individual in the athletic department, but I find it rather ironic that the message of the email was to praise academic focus and achievement among the athletes...

[OH_Homeschooler]

Yes, the email was from an individual in the athletic department, but I find it rather ironic that the message of the email was to praise academic focus and achievement among the athletes...

 

Well, I think it's great that they are taking the time to emphasize academic success!

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

My best friend, who is a high school English and Drama teacher at a public school, always sends back notes from her daughter's teacher with the teacher's grammar and punctuation corrected. It does matter. Occasional typos and errors are one thing, but if you're in a position to communicate with others, it should be done in a way that can be easily understood. Lack of proper punctuation, grammar and spelling puts the burden on the reader to figure out what the author intended to say.

[swimmermom3]

It was an individual who wrote that, not the school. And not to fall back on stereotypes, but it came from the athletic office, not the English department. I fully agree with the gist of your post.

 

But I take issue with your statement

 

It was not the SCHOOL that sent this email, and it was not an English teacher. It could have been an administrative assistant with possibly a year of post-high school training who wrote that message, or maybe a coach. Are you expecting the coach to teach kids proper grammar? I believe that if you have a college degree then you should know how to write grammatically, and I assume high school coaches have college degrees. But unfortunately, college education does not guarantee that someone will write well. This is true in public school, business, politics, everywhere.

 

As you pointed out, we all have bad days and screw up now and then, and we are educators. But I happen to see some appalling grammar here sometimes. I worry more about the education of the children whose parents ARE teaching grammar and every other subject under the sun but cannot post a complete sentence here (and I'm not talking about the occasional screw-up, I'm talking about some people I've seen post over and over again).

 

And yes, even in a casual place such as this, I believe grammar does matter. I view these boards as a public form of communication. The way a person writes here may not accurately reflect how they communicate professionally, but that's all we have to go on. Personally, I feel like if I let my writing skills go even in a casual message board setting, then eventually I'll stop seeing the importance of proper grammar in all settings.

 

You are correct in that I should not have used the word "school" in that sentence and another poster did point out a better way that it could have been written.:blushing:

 

I am not expecting this particular person to teach my child grammar. However, most of our coaches are teachers and I would naively expect them to possess a certain level of proficiency with regards to grammar and punctuation.

[Mom-ninja.]

It matters to me. When I receive something from the school saying, "Homework is to remind the children of stuff we done did" that says the teacher is uneducated, at least to me.

 

Have you really gotten a note that said that? Oh my.

[FO4UR]

Granted, my own grammar is not perfect...

 

I would expect any communication from a school, whether it's written by a coach or English teacher, to be a representation of the school itself.

 

In a social setting, 'puter speak is OK. In a professional setting, I expect professional communication. We get this concept with dress codes...I mean, it's OK for teachers to wear jeans and flip-flops at home or at the park with their kids...the same dress is NOT OK in the classroom or in parent-teacher meetings.

 

This wasn't even 'puter speak, it was a display of the education one can expect to receive at this school.

[ColoradoMom]

LOL...:lol: You guys must have a lot of spare time!

[Guest Dulcimeramy]

LOL...:lol: You guys must have a lot of spare time!

 

Why would you say that?

 

It doesn't take any time at all to notice egregious grammatical or spelling errors. When those errors pour forth from an educational institution, it takes even less time to mark the irony.

 

I remember when a person could not obtain an administrative or secretarial position anywhere without basic English skills. It really wasn't very long ago.

[Nakia]

I'm on the mailing list for a person who sells a certain line of products as her at-home business. I cannot even read her messages. The run-on sentences hurt my brain as I try to figure out what she is trying to say. I just don't even read them now.

 

Me too!!! She is my neighbor and friend, but I honestly cringe when I read her emails. EEEKKK!!

 

I am not the grammar police, but, yes, it does matter. And I really hate to see innocent kittens die unnecessarily! :D

[Audrey]

My husband was recently lamenting that most of the communications that he receives at work are poorly written. "How bad can it be?" I asked. His answer was that it was bad enough that he spent extra time out of his day checking for clarification that could have been fixed by basic punctuation. A subordinate told him, "It really doesn't matter, does it?"

 

This morning I received this e-mail from my son's high school:

 

Forwarded from the Athletic office at School!

 

Congratulations to our Varsity Boys Swim Team and Varsity Dance Team they were both in the Top Ten Dairy Farmers Academic Awards for the State of ---------!!!!!!

 

The Boys Swim Team placed 6th with a 3.59 GPA and the Dance Team placed 10th with a 3.42 GPA.

 

Our Girls Swim Team and Varsity Cheer Leaders was also over a 3.0 GPA and are on the Dairy Farmers Academic Awards list. Go to ----.org and check out how well are Winter Teams did and be sure to let these Athlete's know how special they are because they know how important their grades are and work very hard to keep them above a 3.0

 

Thanks

Athletic Office

 

 

:tongue_smilie:It does matter. It really does matter. This e-mail says to me that if the school is not capable of sending out an e-mail with appropriate punctuation, let alone grammar, then they are not capable of educating my child. This is not a slam the public school thread because the communications my husband showed me from his work look exactly the same. In fact, I am painfully aware that sometimes my writing on this forum looks somewhat similar as well, depending on what kind of day I am having.

 

Does it matter to you how your writing appears in a public place? Do you judge others by what they write and how they write? What are forgivable mistakes and what ones bother you and why? Would you tolerate one of your children writing in the same fashion that you do if you are more relaxed about your writing? For example, if you choose to never capitalize "I" or the beginning of sentences, do you let your kids do the same?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I agree that it does matter. I also admit that I do judge others (co-workers, colleagues, other work acquaintances) by how they write. Email is such an integral part of business communication. If one is unable to write a clear and coherent email, a lot of miscommunication can happen. Besides that, how you write to others reflects on your workplace reputation. Sending poorly written email makes everyone in your workplace look bad.

 

I do not see many of my co-workers sending poorly written email. I can count on one hand the number of inept emailers in my department. They are all casual staffers who usually work in payroll and funding management. I can excuse a bit of poor grammar if they're good with the accounting and numbers, but sometimes it is difficult to understand what information they are asking for in their emails, and then it becomes a time consuming email-go-round to figure out what they need from me.

 

I will not hire a person to work under me who cannot write well. It is one thing to write casually in a personal email or text, but I simply cannot risk my department's reputation on someone who is incapable of writing well.

[KristinaBreece]

It matters to me. A coach, administrative assistant, or athletic director will have, at the minimum, graduated from high school. I expect a high school graduate, who chooses to work in an educational field, to have a good grasp of basic grammar rules. Anyone who will be sending correspondence as a representative of a school should be able to manage to differentiate between plural and possessive.

[mrsrevmeg]

I think that in a professional setting grammar does matter. I also believe spelling is very important.

On facebook, it might annoy me if it takes me a while to figure out someone's meaning, but big deal. It's facebook. On a message board or a personal blog it is the same thing.

When my kids were in elementary school they both had teachers with awful grammar at one point or another. That bothered me. They would hear correct grammar at home, then go to school and hear things like "brung, done did, not no," etc... Children do get influenced by what they hear. We have gotten newsletters from schools, churches, and ministries with bad typos ie: sinning rather than singing, my name is often spelled Killi rather than Kelli (on my home church bulletin)

In a professional setting poor spelling/grammar appears to show ignorance or laziness. if you are sending something that represents a school or business, you NEED to take the time to make sure your writing is correct.

[LidiyaDawn]

 

This week when I was driving home, there was a drive-thru oil change place hiring. On their billboard the sign read "Now Hiring Will Trian". My immediate thought was, if that's not changed by tomorrow, I don't think I'll be trusting them to fix my car!

 

If you're talking about the signs with the giant letters - I've done those signs and I swear, your brain just doesn't "see" the words the same as it does when you're writing or typing in normal size letters. I don't know how to explain it, but I know that I've messed up billboard signs with errors in the simplest of words (like your "trian") and I'm a very good speller. You just don't SEE it... although normally I'd see it once I had it all up and had walked a distance away. Maybe the person who did the sign didn't actually LOOK at it when he/she was done...

[LidiyaDawn]

My husband was recently lamenting that most of the communications that he receives at work are poorly written. "How bad can it be?" I asked. His answer was that it was bad enough that he spent extra time out of his day checking for clarification that could have been fixed by basic punctuation. A subordinate told him, "It really doesn't matter, does it?"

 

This morning I received this e-mail from my son's high school:

 

Forwarded from the Athletic office at School!

Congratulations to our Varsity Boys Swim Team and Varsity Dance Team they were both in the Top Ten Dairy Farmers Academic Awards for the State of ---------!!!!!!

The Boys Swim Team placed 6th with a 3.59 GPA and the Dance Team placed 10th with a 3.42 GPA.

Our Girls Swim Team and Varsity Cheer Leaders was also over a 3.0 GPA and are on the Dairy Farmers Academic Awards list. Go to ----.org and check out how well are Winter Teams did and be sure to let these Athlete's know how special they are because they know how important their grades are and work very hard to keep them above a 3.0

 

Thanks

Athletic Office

 

 

:tongue_smilie:It does matter. It really does matter. This e-mail says to me that if the school is not capable of sending out an e-mail with appropriate punctuation, let alone grammar, then they are not capable of educating my child. This is not a slam the public school thread because the communications my husband showed me from his work look exactly the same. In fact, I am painfully aware that sometimes my writing on this forum looks somewhat similar as well, depending on what kind of day I am having.

 

Does it matter to you how your writing appears in a public place? Do you judge others by what they write and how they write? What are forgivable mistakes and what ones bother you and why? Would you tolerate one of your children writing in the same fashion that you do if you are more relaxed about your writing? For example, if you choose to never capitalize "I" or the beginning of sentences, do you let your kids do the same?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ok...I see some grammar mistakes and such, but I'm not sure what the significance of your red highlighting is... ?

[Lovin Learnin]

It was an individual who wrote that, not the school. And not to fall back on stereotypes, but it came from the athletic office, not the English department. I fully agree with the gist of your post.

 

But I take issue with your statement

 

It was not the SCHOOL that sent this email, and it was not an English teacher. It could have been an administrative assistant with possibly a year of post-high school training who wrote that message, or maybe a coach. Are you expecting the coach to teach kids proper grammar? I believe that if you have a college degree then you should know how to write grammatically, and I assume high school coaches have college degrees. But unfortunately, college education does not guarantee that someone will write well. This is true in public school, business, politics, everywhere.

 

 

 

Administrative assistants are trained and expected (or should be) to correct grammar and punctuation. A coach or a teacher should definitely be able to construct a solid memo. In any case, unless this was their first day on the job I'm going to guess that someone knows about this person's writing challenges. The administration has a responsibility to make sure that any and all writing is proofed before it goes out to the community. I personally think everyone should have a proofreader in a business or school setting. Even admins can proofread each other's work.

[swimmermom3]

Ok...I see some grammar mistakes and such, but I'm not sure what the significance of your red highlighting is... ?

 

The red highlighting is original to the e-mail. No significance.

[LidiyaDawn]

The red highlighting is original to the e-mail. No significance.

 

Oh, okay ~ I thought I was missing something.. I even went googling "GPA" because I didn't grow up with that sort of grading system (and we don't use it currently) but even after reading what it means in the US, I still wasn't seeing anything that stood out. Now I know why! :laugh:

[dakarimom5]

Have you really gotten a note that said that? Oh my.

 

Yes I did. To which I went to the school and told the principal that I had done many things in my life but I had never "done did" anything. My other peeve is when people use the word loose, as in, "If you loose something check the lost and found."

[Mejane]

I personally think everyone should have a proofreader in a business or school setting. Even admins can proofread each other's work.

 

:iagree:My dh is very good at what he does, but he knows he doesn't write well. My dd or I proofread everything important that goes out of his office.

[teamturner]

It matters to me. A coach, administrative assistant, or athletic director will have, at the minimum, graduated from high school. I expect a high school graduate, who chooses to work in an educational field, to have a good grasp of basic grammar rules. Anyone who will be sending correspondence as a representative of a school should be able to manage to differentiate between plural and possessive.

 

I'd go a little further and say that I would expect a high school graduate period to know basic grammar rules. I know I did and I was not at the top of my graduation class. I did get a college degree but they don't teach grammar in college. At least they didn't when I went to college. :confused:

 

It really drives me crazy to read something with gross grammar errors. I have to read it over and over again to find out the meaning. It's really sad to see the dumbing down of society.

[Jane in NC]

Did you see syndicated columnist "Ask Amy" today?

 

Dear Amy: My partner and I run a small business and are currently in the process of hiring employees.

 

We have asked candidates to fill out an application and to send us their resumes via e-mail. Although we do not expect perfection, the errors on the applications we have received are astonishing: incomplete sentences, numerous spelling errors, format inconsistencies, and an absence of periods and capitalization.

 

Most of our applicants are recent college graduates. While perfect grammar is not a requirement of this position, attention to detail is important. We want to say something to our applicants to encourage them to take more time on future job applications. Making a good first impression is important. However, we aren't sure that this is our place. If we speak up, how should we approach the topic in a professional, nonthreatening way?

 

— Conflicted

 

 

 

Amy goes on to give advice but I have quoted the initial query as a follow up to the email the OP copied.

 

Does it matter? Well it does to these employers!

[LittleIzumi]

Yes, it matters.

 

Everyone (sender and receiver) benefits when thoughts are communicated clearly. This means properly using the tools of punctuation and correct spelling.

 

Are there times when it doesn't matter? Sure. I don't care if friends capitalize on their facebook statuses, for instance. But in professional communications, such as the notice from the Athletic Department? Yes, it matters.

 

~ Linda (who is a self-confessed grammar snob)

:iagree:

 

I won't capitalize in chats esp when I have the baby on one arm. However, professional & scholastic writings should never have egregious grammatical or spelling issues. It's always a little off-putting to see three spelling errors on one flier (last month) or on a college syllabus.

[Sara R]

My kids' wonderful charter school, based on the Well-Trained Mind, had 14 grammar and spelling errors in their registration packets. It reflects poorly on the school. It makes grown-ups look ridiculous to intelligent children.

 

I understand that some people are not gifted in spelling and grammar, but dang it, if you are sending written communication from a school, you'd better make sure someone who can write and spell properly proofreads it before it goes out!

[Jayne J]

hek know, grammer and speling ar'nt importent at awl. I meen, if peepul kan unnerstand whut u ar sayin, than hoo cares? Rite?:D

 

 

(By the way, I'm just kidding. Grammar and spelling are vital and although e-mail and forum chat tend to be looser, professional and academic works that are incorrectly spelled or have bad grammar essentially undermine whatever message they are trying to send.)

[Mom-ninja.]

In a social setting, 'puter speak is OK. In a professional setting, I expect professional communication. We get this concept with dress codes...I mean, it's OK for teachers to wear jeans and flip-flops at home or at the park with their kids...the same dress is NOT OK in the classroom or in parent-teacher meetings.

 

 

 

 

Um, where I live, teacher do wear jeans and flip flops in the classroom. I've commented on it before to my DH. I think teachers should dress professionally or at least casual business. I'm astounded at what I see teachers wearing while on the job.

[blondeviolin]

I'm finishing up my bachelors through online classes. You'd be amazed at the horrific spelling and grammar that happens on the discussion boards! I've even had professors who can't form coherent sentences. The worst was my English II professor who constantly wrote "your" for "you're.". You should read this post on the alot. you'll feel much better.

[tex-mex]

It was an individual who wrote that, not the school. And not to fall back on stereotypes, but it came from the athletic office, not the English department. I fully agree with the gist of your post.

 

But I take issue with your statement

 

It was not the SCHOOL that sent this email, and it was not an English teacher. It could have been an administrative assistant with possibly a year of post-high school training who wrote that message, or maybe a coach. Are you expecting the coach to teach kids proper grammar? I believe that if you have a college degree then you should know how to write grammatically, and I assume high school coaches have college degrees. But unfortunately, college education does not guarantee that someone will write well. This is true in public school, business, politics, everywhere.

 

As you pointed out, we all have bad days and screw up now and then, and we are educators. But I happen to see some appalling grammar here sometimes. I worry more about the education of the children whose parents ARE teaching grammar and every other subject under the sun but cannot post a complete sentence here (and I'm not talking about the occasional screw-up, I'm talking about some people I've seen post over and over again).

 

And yes, even in a casual place such as this, I believe grammar does matter. I view these boards as a public form of communication. The way a person writes here may not accurately reflect how they communicate professionally, but that's all we have to go on. Personally, I feel like if I let my writing skills go even in a casual message board setting, then eventually I'll stop seeing the importance of proper grammar in all settings.

I agree with the idea that the person who sent the email may not have been a credentialized English teacher. ;) I do not agree with the thought that on this board we have to obey the grammar police. It does not bother me if others are up in arms about punctuation or prose. However, to be told to do so is legalistic IMO. LOL :D

[OH_Homeschooler]

I agree with the idea that the person who sent the email may not have been a credentialized English teacher. ;) I do not agree with the thought that on this board we have to obey the grammar police. It does not bother me if others are up in arms about punctuation or prose. However, to be told to do so is legalistic IMO. LOL :D

 

My issue is that so many people are quick to judge the person who wrote this communication from the school, whereas I see so much poor grammar right here on these boards. Why is proper grammar expected of public school educators but poor grammar is excused among our own? I realize a lot of people come here as a place of community and do let their hair down.

 

But I also see this as probably one of a few places where we, as educators, can express our thoughts to other educators. We do not get the opportunity to send mass emails out to groups of parents in a professional capacity (or at least I don't), but we have these boards. Why write poorly when you are capable of doing better?

 

It just seems like a double standard. FWIW, I am a bit of a grammar snob but I never bring up grammar on message boards and I don't go out of my way to correct people's grammar. I may choose not to read your posts if they are poorly written, but I would never say "wow, I wanted to read your post but I just could not tolerate all the grammar problems."

 

And I certainly think messages sent out by public schools should be more professional than the one quoted in the OP. But I disagree with some of the generalizations being made about it. It is easy for us to say "I do not always write well on here because I am nursing a kid" or whatever, but the person who sent that message on behalf of the school may be dealing with his/her own circumstances, to which we are not privy.

[Perry]

My issue is that so many people are quick to judge the person who wrote this communication from the school, whereas I see so much poor grammar right here on these boards.

I actually think the grammar on this board is exceptionally good, compared to the rest of the internet.

[Perry]

I actually think the grammar on this board is exceptionally good, compared to the rest of the internet.

Or would that be compared with? :blush:

[OH_Homeschooler]

You are correct, I do think the grammar here is better than a lot of the Internet. But there are still some individuals with major grammar problems and if outsiders were to judge all of us based on those people, we would not like what they had to say. And I have seen other places online where homeschooling is bashed based on the way people write on homeschooling message boards.

[Cindyz]

We had a speech therapist come into our home and say, "Do he like axe for snacks if he want them?"

 

Yes, a SPEECH therapist through the school system.

[mcconnellboys]

Bingo.

[regentrude]

It is easy for us to say "I do not always write well on here because I am nursing a kid" or whatever, but the person who sent that message on behalf of the school may be dealing with his/her own circumstances, to which we are not privy.

 

If I write any sort of communication as part of my professional life, nursing a kid or whatever circumstances are not valid excuses.

I see a difference between informal communications here as private individuals and writing on the job which always reflects on the quality of the company/organization/school as a whole.

[melissel]

Does it matter to you how your writing appears in a public place? Do you judge others by what they write and how they write?...Would you tolerate one of your children writing in the same fashion that you do if you are more relaxed about your writing? For example, if you choose to never capitalize "I" or the beginning of sentences, do you let your kids do the same?

 

Yes, it matters very much to me. Yes, I do judge based on written communication in professional and formal settings--on message boards and in quick, dash-off-a-note emails, not so much. I'm not relaxed about my writing in that way, with the exception of the occasional text message when I'm in a hurry. No, I don't tolerate it from DD8 and won't from DD5 (though she will absolutely do it just to make me insane, I guarantee it). I have drilled into them both already that their written communications and manner of speech are two of the most important ways they'll present themselves to the world, and people will judge them and make assumptions based on both. We just had a conversation about it the other day, in fact.

 

NONONONO!

[melissel]

Or would that be compared with? :blush:

 

Yes! :lol:

 

http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/ranges.aspx

 

That's not even the kind of thing that bothers me, though, really. I honestly don't expect the average person to know the difference (I have to look it up myself usually--it does not seem to stick). What SwimmerMom posted is unacceptable to me.

Edited March 1, 2011 by melissel

[katemary63]

It matters to me. A coach, administrative assistant, or athletic director will have, at the minimum, graduated from high school. I expect a high school graduate, who chooses to work in an educational field, to have a good grasp of basic grammar rules. Anyone who will be sending correspondence as a representative of a school should be able to manage to differentiate between plural and possessive.

 

:iagree: Exactly. ANYONE who writes a note as a representative of an educational facility should endeavor to use proper grammar and puntuation.