Spelling: A Lost Art

Spelling: A Lost Art

Spelling: A Lost Art

Is there a reason why no one seems to know how to spell anymore? How are we supposed to communicate with one another if people can't write in any coherent way? Has spelling been banned from the curriculum also, along with grammar, and literature. Perhaps, if people read more, they would learn syntax, grammar and spelling. But, of course, reading is something old folks do.

I know that texting, IM'ing and social networking among the young have reduced the English language to a series of shortcut spellings and abbreviations. Initially it was done, not only to save time, but to keep parents out of the loop in their conversations. However, as these young people soon discovered, parents are not as stupid as their kids think they are. Adults soon learned the secret code and began using it. One would hope, however, that they haven't forgotten how to spell.

Unfortunately, for a lot of today's youth, spelling was either never learned, deemed unnecessary, or replaced by text-speak. I went to college as an older student. I was appalled by the inability of my younger classmates to spell. I was even more appalled by the fact, that in high school, they were never graded on spelling, only on content. Are you kidding me! How can there be any worthy content in a paper that is filled with misspellings. Any essay or thesis that has to be translated before it can be read, should qualify for an 'F'. And yes, in a red pen complete with exclamation marks.

Here are a few examples of what I have seen misspelled in actual correspondence. "Holey difrent subjeck." "cuz no one beleeved me." "the Grand Canyen was beutifull." "My favret show is 'Hells Kichen." Translation: "Wholly different subject." "Because no one Believed me." "The Grand Canyon was beautiful." "My favorite show is 'Hell's Kitchen." These were handwritten, so they are not typographical errors. You might think these were written by elementary students or younger, but, in fact,all were written by High School aged children, and one was written by a 26-year old.

English is our native tongue. We should know how to speak it and we should know how to write it. There is no excuse for this. Three quarters of the world speak and write our language better than we do. That is unacceptable. Stop diminishing the importance of spelling and properly spoken English in favor of mastery in science and mathematics. If you can't spell, you can't write or read. If you can't read, how are you going to be good at anything? And if we can't correspond with each other through the written word, then we will all be back in Babel.

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