Speling Duz It Reely Mater?

[Guest Wolfie]

My Mum did the same on a piece of my history homework - I had spelt a word correctly and the teacher had crossed it out and put in an incorrect spelling! My Mum was fuming and made a huge fuss!

[Gezabel]

Strange the memories that this thread has evoked.

 

I have vivid memories of a particular weekly spelling test. We had ten words each week and the word in question was 'calves'. I remember furiously rubbing 'calf' out and changing it to 'calfs' and then deciding on 'calves'.

 

Maybe i remember because I got ten out of ten that day and was held up as some sort of shining example to the rest of the class. My teacher told me I would always be good at spelling because I had 'mastered the art'.

 

I had just had my 5th birthday

[aliamch]

When my eldest child was in the infants the school held a literacy evening where we were told so long as the word was spelled phonically, not to tell our children the correct spelling. The evening was run by a lady from the LA and we were also given the spiel about not knocking children's confidence by constantly correcting them. The result is as MaryEmac says, a lot of 12 year olds out there are really struggling with spelling. My girl has fantastic spelling and grammer, partly because she is a voracious reader, partly because I couldn't bare not correct mistakes and my children know they need to check a dictionary before I tell them how to spell a word. I also can't stand text speak and my brothers joke about my properly spelt and punctuated text's! Old habits die hard I guess.

Karrie

[Running Bunny]

When my eldest child was in the infants the school held a literacy evening where we were told so long as the word was spelled phonically, not to tell our children the correct spelling. The evening was run by a lady from the LA and we were also given the spiel about not knocking children's confidence by constantly correcting them. The result is as MaryEmac says, a lot of 12 year olds out there are really struggling with spelling. My girl has fantastic spelling and grammer, partly because she is a voracious reader, partly because I couldn't bare not correct mistakes and my children know they need to check a dictionary before I tell them how to spell a word. I also can't stand text speak and my brothers joke about my properly spelt and punctuated text's! Old habits die hard I guess.

Karrie

 

You've raised a couple of points that I was going to add..

 

My five year old god daughter had to write a diary whilst we were away on holiday as she was taken out of school (we'll save that debate for another day!) She is learning to read and write through the use of phonics, and whilst she is a high achiever and a keen reader/writer, she was already feeling the pressure to get her spelling right. It was very hard to sit and help her,without spelling the word out and encouraging her to do it. The results were a mixed bag of words that were almost there (silent 'e' at the end of a word missing for example) and some that I had trouble deciphering. Fortunately, in my opinion, the teacher did correct spellings and the children were encouraged to look back in their diaries to see if they had used the word before and I guess the frequency of using a word meant that eventually it would be spelt correctly and the child would have 'learnt' this word.

 

The other point is about reading - I was a very avid reader and still am, and was nicknamed the walking dictionary at school due to my spelling ability. If anyone wanted to spell something, the cry would always be 'ask Sarah'. I believe that the reading definitely impacted on my ability to spell.

 

As far as the rest of the debate goes, I'm in the camp that spelling and grammar does matter. Even if there are situations in life when you may not need good spelling on a daily basis - perhaps in a trade job, for example, at some point in life you will need to fill out job applications, write letters and fill in other forms where correct spelling is important.

 

I think that there is a time and a place for text speak/spelling - and I'll use it when texting my sister and younger friends, but not my parents - but children need to be taught when it is the right time to use one version or another - text spelling on facebook fine, but not a job application.

[HappyMaz]

I hate to say it but from what I see in my area, colleges are encouraging lots of young people into child care courses when they clearly haven't got the interest (or even worse the ability) We are getting student's on the level 3 course who can't read a picture book because their literacy skills aren't up to reading even simple texts. We have also had students who want to be literacy and numeracy support assistants who don't have basic GCSE's.

Oh no - now you've done it Marion: you've hit one of my REALLY hot buttons! How did I miss this before? I have been banging on about this for so long its getting boring - but I do think we won't get a fully engaged, respected workforce until we begin to look at how colleges accept candidates onto childcare courses. For too long we have looked at young girls who struggle with both literacy and numeracy and where do we think the best place to put them? On a childcare course, obviously. Trying to teach child developent theory to a student with the level of skills you describe is soul destroying, Marion. I've long contended that basic skills screening should happen before candidates are accepted on any course so that they can be supported to gain the reading, writing and comprehension skills they need to underpin further learning.

 

Our LA has carried out a workforce audit just recently, asking employers to identify which practitioners have GCSE in both English and Maths - and suggesting that the GLF be used to support those practitioners who wish to gain these qualifications. How sad that this should be necessary - and don't get me started on the numbers of people who have been failed by their education because they have been able to get thorugh the whole of their school career without ever being able to learn to read and write.

 

Maz

[Susan]

Content can not be fully understood and appreciated if it is neither correct grammatically or correctly spelt.

[Marion]

We've had a lovely girl in this year NVQ3 she's helpful and willing but she can't read. On the first day her tutor asked us not to ask her to read to the children as she would struggle...but isn't that part of the job we are training her to do? We compromised by sending the book home each night for her to practice but even so it was obviously a real struggle.

[Alison]

well as a bad speller from a family of dyslexics part of me agrees that the content is of an assignment shouldnt be lost or "put down" purely because of the spelling and grammar and from my own expereince one of my modules at uni was marked down because of its bad spelling and grammer and that dragged my final grade down from a 2.1 to 2.2 I even offered to redo the module but no chance

 

however I think spelling and grammar important!

 

text speak is ok on a phone when time and space is limited, but not in an essay! to be blunt, I think text speak in an essay is a symtom of laziness, what does that say about a person looking for a responcible job caring for children if they cannt be bothered to write words properly, will they be bothered to do all the checks and chores at work properly? if we dont expect proper standards as children go through school and college then are we preparing them for the standards at work?

 

if someone has a genuine reason for poor spelling or if the spelling mistakes are minor then fair enough there should be some concessions or support but there is a difference between a bad speller and a lazy speller

[Deb]

I think that I would find mental arithmetic (sp) easier if I practised adding figures and number bonds in my head, rather than reaching for the calculator after all the more we use certain parts of our brain the bigger that part is but I am lazy in that respect I really do not want to tax my brain .

[Guest]

How about this?

 

I cdnuolt blveiee that I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno't mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Azanmig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt!

[JacquieL]

Wow Azanmig I read that through at almost normal speed. So what does that say about phonics, or is it because we are capable readers with lots of experience that we can do this? Er i think i've probably answered my own question.

[Guest]

Wow Azanmig I read that through at almost normal speed. So what does that say about phonics, or is it because we are capable readers with lots of experience that we can do this? Er i think i've probably answered my own question.

 

 

I think also it works because we have a high vocabulary knowledge, thus why TALKING and LISTENING (and saying / hearing interesting things) are such important life skills.

 

Peggy

[JacquieL]

Sopt on Pgegy!

[Susan]

Also, all the letters are there!