Spelling???

[Enigma]

Incidentally regarding spelling, isn't the standard today absolutley appalling. Even on TV text you get things like "lightening" for lightning. Even teachers and Uni graduates can't spell. Everybody seems to substitute "A" for "I" as in "definAtly" when it is "Definitely" It seems that people are now spelling words the way they SOUND. As for this terrible trend to reduce everything to a code that is beyond it. PPL for people etcetera, terrible.

Here is an exmple I just found on the net >>> will young iz fit it iz tru vat married or gay ppl r va best lookin!!!!!!!!!! What the hell does that all mean? You might as well write it up in Martian!!!!

[Mark]

Will young is fit, it is true that married or gay people are the best looking?

Mehh to be fair, I dont think anybody can be a perfect speller, my downfall is grammer. Yes on most sites I do type in slang, but that is simply because of my mobile, back in the days when I had to pay for texts, I had to limit the characters to fit in one message, which shortened words, and this is a trend with most.

I do type like that, like quite alot of the time I tend to say "wot" instead of what, or as a joke with mates say things like:-

"Omg did u c that ova there? it woz da bomb"

Its basically a joke, and I can still type in english? Ive had to for essays and all things like that, which most teachers also do. ;]]

And yes people do use codes, but thats for them and mates, also people on the same wave length, if somebody cant understand it then simply ignore it :biggrin:

Its like an internet accent, In person people from different areas use different slang right? So why not online! :confused: (This is about that quote)

But to be fair, slang is adapt how society and the english language is adapting over time, I bet even a hundred years ago someone said exactly the same as you did about this subject.

I mean words are being added to the dictionary which are "slang" words, that must show something???

But as you dont see important documents such as essays, exams, important documents, its unfair to say "Even teachers and Uni graduates can't spell."

My spelling is poor but not everybody is like me? I think the main point is You have to adapt.

[Shadow]

I think the system has evolved to try and make it quicker for people to communicate - not everybody has the typing speed of say, Twazzle, Smurlos or myself for example ...

So slower typists, or non-touch-typists, can still use chat programs and so on to communicate at a fair lick by abbreviating their chit-chat ...

.

I think net speak is fuuuuuuuuuuunny :biggrin:.

Roflmao noob bbq !! ROCKON !!!!!

!?!?! Shadow !?!?!

[marshlander]

Having often been accused of being an unreconstructable pedant (or sumfin like dat!) language is, and always has been, dynamic ... not just in the English speaking world, but even in France

Yes, I'm still irritated when language is used inappropriately, but to generalise as you have, Enigma, is surely just being mischievous. I have been in and out of schools for pretty much all of my life and I cannot think of a period when more attention has ever been paid to spelling and grammar than the present.

As Saltybeanz points out language has to be fit for purpose (5 marks off my score for a cliché) and as Shadow says, we now have different means of producing text. I suspect that many mistakes are made these days by the hurry we are all in to get on to the next task. We are also bound by the medium in which we write. For example, while I love to use a fountain pen I am constrained on here to use a cheap keyboard with unevenly "sticking" keys. Unless I am very careful to check my writing I often miss letters out of words because I don't hit the keys hard enough. Similarly, the habits formed through typing are different from those required for spelling when writing longhand. It's very easy to hit combinations of keys in the wrong order. I know full well how to spell "the", but that won't stop me having to go over this message and change every single "teh".

As for text language, I bet you wrote and spoke in code when you were younger? Albert and I were discussing pig Latin last evening (what my mum and I called "backslang" when I was a kid). We soon learn that if we want to be understood we use the language most appropriate to our audience.

Actually, another thought has just struck me. I bet we are actually communicating more nowadays using the written word than we ever did before the widespread use of personal computers. If this can be proven there is every reason to believe that we are seeing a wider range of spelling ability than you or I may have seen in our youth. What would you rather have, the written word reserved for an elite who can afford to be published or an apparent democratisation of ideas?

Regards

[Enigma]

This not to criticise andyone personally. To each hs own. I too like SB use abbreviation like "wot" and "wotnot" & "doofer" but when I see mistakes on national tv text I gets my goat out. They at least should know better. Incidentally SB, without criticism it's grammAr not grammEr. You see what I mean, folk today are spelling words like they SOUND. I blame this stupid system they use in school nowadays.

[Mark]

See one spelling mistake, ive done english had an B in the exams, but still spell wrong. I dont think you can blame schools.

May I also point out, being welsh in school the welsh language was made more important. But not to be horribe, sometimes you speak and I dont understand a word im like O.O.

Its the generation gap, language has envolved, yes spelling mistakes are present but get over it? Text on tv is manually inputted. This is done over a keyboard, never had a typo?.

Without sounding harsh, you dont attend school, or university these days do you? How can you make a statement like you did without attending. Yes spelling may be getting worse but not that bad. To be fair, theres alot more important things for young people to focus on than spelling. I dont recall back in the days in school being taught 5 languages like I had to, while doing other subjects. I mean the lessons I covered were:-

Japanese
French
Welsh
English
Spanish
Maths
Statistics
English Lit
English Lan
Geography
Drama
Music
PSE
R.E
History
Information Systems
Business studies
Media studies
P.E
Wood Tech
Cookery
Textiles
Art
DOE
General Studies
Accountancy
Biology
Physics
Chemistry

and thats just the ones we basically had to do add on the fact im now doing a course which includes

Law
Sociology
Business Ethics
Even more Maths
Management
International Politics
Information systems again
Economics
Marketing
Accountancy

and me and shadow worked out I get 40 hours lectures 40 hours sem per module, then meant to put in my own hours, working out each module, would take me over 500 days a year? which is impossible. So May I say where you critise spelling, remember the amount of subjects we have to cover, and im sorry if doing all these means my spelling isnt up to your standards, but you know life goes on.

By the way, try remembering how to spell in 5 languages with constant exams, see how well you do

[Mark]

This not to criticise andyone personally. To each hs own.

Two mistakes? OH MY CAN YOU NOT SPELL? DAM EDUCATION, WE ARE ALL IN RISK THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE OH NO. What hope is there for us youth when you oldies cant spell :biggrin:

[Enigma]

Two mistakes? OH MY CAN YOU NOT SPELL? DAM EDUCATION, WE ARE ALL IN RISK THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE OH NO. What hope is there for us youth when you oldies cant spell :biggrin:

I never said I could spell SB. Never been my strong point. It just makes me despair when young folk take all the time and trouble and expense to improve themselvs by going to Uni [a chance I never had] and then see the way they let themselves down with sloppy spelling

[marshlander]

... It just makes me despair when young folk take all the time and trouble and expense to improve themselvs by going to Uni [a chance I never had] and then see the way they let themselves down with sloppy spelling

So ... Presentation, one; Content, nil?

[Enigma]

Incidentally SB how many of your list >>

Japanese
French
Welsh
English
Spanish
Maths
Statistics
English Lit
English Lan
Geography
Drama
Music
PSE
R.E
History
Information Systems
Business studies
Media studies
P.E
Wood Tech
Cookery
Textiles
Art
DOE
General Studies
Accountancy
Biology
Physics
Chemistry

Are of actually use to you now? In my time we used to get latin and other bloody useles stuff because the education system then thought that we would all need it for some reason or other. I never took any notice at all during the hour of latin and used to get a bloody rap across the knuckles with the rule for "lack of attention" That was from the priest who was giving the lesson and a bloody sadist he was too. Always dragging some poor wretch from class and caning them such force it bled, then sending them to school nurse for treatment which consisted of smothering the cuts with iodine so you got stung twice fo each offence.