When did they stop teaching spelling, capitalization and grammar in school?

Question

Seriously, the wack-jobs that post these questions can't all be 6 year olds, so what's the deal?

Answer 1

I grade the essays on standardized tests for different states, and I know exactly what you mean. From what I've seen, schools stop teaching grammar and spelling in 6th or 7th grade, because there is almost no difference between the writing abilities of these students and 10th graders. Any words which might be above 6th or 7th grade level are almost always misspelled. A lot of the problem is simply the internet. Kids get used to abbreviating to the point that they forget correct grammar. Another problem may be the media. Few children who have been fed a steady diet of Miller beer commercials can remember that another word for low calorie is spelled "light," not "lite."

Answer 2

I believe it is still taught but many people feel it isn't necessary on the internet for some reason. I would hope that they do a better job on their schoolwork, college applications, and job applications than they do on the internet. There has been a whole new language developed by internet users and sometimes I think I am reading a foreign language. Also, a lot of people are just downright lazy about grammar, punctuation, and spelling. They don't seem to realize a readable post will get a better response from those trying to give them answers.

Answer 3

Well, the good news is its not as bad as it looks. Many people thend to use a sort of informal shorthand on the internet--if u c what I mean?

The bad news is tha tschools are not teaching spelling, grammer, etc. to any real extent. More seriously, they are not teaching the reading and writing skills kids need. I see this frequently working with college students. These are bright young people ( its a top-ranked school) but their grasp of critical reading is poor, and their writing skills are even worse--due directly to a lack of adeqate preparation in high school. And the situation for math is just as bad--and in other subjects, worse.

Put bluntly, our schools are not doing their job. And I honestly can't fault the parents. These are young people who have had good parental support--and are genuinely trying to do well. The parents have done a credible job--but they can't be held responsible for a school system that fails their kids--and then deliberately covers up the failure.

And I mean exactly that. Think about this: the most recent "National Report Card" found incresed deficiencies among high school seniors in both verbal and math skills--the US now ranks 17th among 22 industrialized nations (we used to be first). Yet figures show that these same students are taking "more challenging courses" and making bettter grades. But there's no way thosetwo sets of facts can both be accurate. Conclusion (which I already knew, this is just more proff): schools and the "education professionals' are making no effort to fix the problems in our schools. In fact, the situation is continuing to deteriorate--and they are inflating grades in an effort to cover up the systemic and individual failures.

Answer 4

The English language is bigger than we thought. A good many of these questions are from non-native speakers: from India, Singapore, Africa, and other outposts of the British Empire.

Many of the rest are from nations where English was never spoken, but they learned enough to use the Internet. This really surprised me, but it turns out that in some regards, you have to learn written English to join the world community.

As to those from English-speaking nations, it's probably useful to point out that perhaps twenty years ago, most people never had to use written communications in their jobs or daily lives. It was all telephone or personal. Now, however, there is the extremely efficient but literarily-demanding e-mail. I wonder how many of our friends' parents would have sounded particularly literate in this medium?

And so the written language itself has changed. Phonetic spellings and abbreviations, once confined to shorthand, telegraphy and Theodore Roosevelt, have come into fashion.

Ergo, u r trying to sweep back the c.

Answer 5

Back in the 70's there was a program that allowed children to spell the word the way they sounded. Children did not have spelling, grammar, or proper sentence structure. In the 90,s that called the same program Reading to write and did not have to spell as they wrote journals and reports. Then along came txt mex and spelling went to H..l
Yes, I can spell it I just don't say it.

Answer 6

People cannot be bothered to spell out simple words; it's a rush, rush society. The autonomy of the Internet allows the users to post without suffering the stigma attached to possessing poor grammar skills.

Answer 7

They stopped on January 23, 1984 at exacly 11:03 and 17.98378958737895 seconds.

Answer 8

I think it has to do with the Internet. Most people do not use punctuation on here because it is almost like a form of talking to someone that is right there in front of them. I know i am teaching my kids to use it and hope most parents take the time to work with their kids to help them do it the right way. =)

Answer 9

Teachers got tenure and the corrupt local politicians realized that having a failing school usually entitles them in getting bailout funding from the federal government.

Answer 10

Amen.

I have no idea what the deal is, but I'm sure it has something to do with lower standards.