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[teacheratlarge]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/hay-festival/10086135/Hay-Festival-2013-Oxford-professor-asks-for-grammar-pedants-to-relax.html

So how relaxed are you with your grammar?

Not sure I am in favor of they're/their/there being unified, but I certainly see his point, that language is continually changing.

There are cases though, where grammar is important:

"Let's eat, grandpa!" and "Let's eat grandpa!" may result in different storylines (and different meals ).

[Sashadroogie]

Not relaxed at all. And, I'd argue that it is not 'my' grammar' or 'your' grammar, but standardised grammar. All this excuse-making for those who just can't be bothered to learn standard spelling or grammar. It is rude of them.

Languages change, it is true. But sadly, they change because of ignorance. That is not 'evolution' or 'progress', as others sometimes say.

I have battalions of Grammar Riot Police booting up as we speak, ready to defend the virtues of standardised spelling and grammar, hic!

[scot47]

Grammar is King ! Or in the case of Shasha, "Supreme Leader" !

We have the ludicrous situation now of so-called teaxhers of language who would not know the subjunctive if it bit them on the derriere !

I suggest three years of Latin plus German or Russian for anyone who wants to be an English teacher ! ESPECIALLYT if they are Yanks ! That will sensitise them to the need for Grammar.

Omnia vincit labor !

[Sashadroogie]

Dunno about the Yanks part. Plenty of UKians are in need of a good re-education.

But agree with all else. Bring on Latin grammar, followed by anything Slavic!!

[sager]

Sashadroogie wrote: "Not relaxed at all."

Neither am I.
Or as my American colleagues would say: "I'm also not relaxed."

scot47 wrote: "I suggest three years of Latin plus German...."

I have five years of each.

sager

[Sashadroogie]

Is anybody else annoyed by the 'grammar nazi' tag that is always bandied about so... liberally? The fascist piggies were not noted for their erudition, after all. So, I suggest we found a new party, a 'Grammar Commie Party' to combat linguistic sloppiness - starting with the university in the Telegraph article. For proper, systematic re-education of language offenders, nobody can match our side of the totalitarian wing!

The Hammer and Sickle can emblazon our banner, flanked by a couple of apostrophes...

'☭'

[the_thinker]

[spiral78]

I note in the original article linked by the OP that the audience for this misguided nut 'gasped' at the thought.
Even the guy's colleagues thought this was a bad idea.


As a teacher who works with final-step students (mine are heading out to the real international stage, in some cases at quite high levels), I'm not in any way going to send them out with grammar, punctuation, or spelling that will be considered controversial by an international audience. Most of them already carry the badge of 'non-native speaker.' In the eyes of a fair number of ignorant Yanks and Brits and etc, non-native speakers of English are already at a disadvantage in terms of credibility.

It would be a serious disservice to the students if I were to allow them to further lower their perceived credibility by their use of substandard grammar, punctuation, or spelling.

[santi84]

I've heard a few teachers say that English grammar doesn't really matter. I also know that those teachers have never tried to learn a second language themselves

[Sashadroogie]

They may have tried, but they usually do not succeed...

'☭'

[Dedicated]

I actually find Professor Simon Horobin's speech at the Hay Festival quite surprising and contradictory.

I have just finished reading his book "Does Spelling Matter?" (published in March, 2013 by Oxford University Press), in which Horobin clearly states that spelling matters and, more to the point, our existing spelling matters. It is a cultural achievement and a record of the language's history.

His book is a comprehensive and scholarly lesson in why we spell the way we do and why, in order to preserve the richness, subtlety and history of our language, it is right we keep doing so.

Horobin usually writes about the history and development of the English language and spends a lot of time studying medieval manuscripts. He posits that language does evolve over time and standardized spelling is only a recent phenomenon. I don't think he had the non-native speaker or EFL world in mind.

His words at the Hay Festival have been interpreted as undermining the fight to improve children's failing literacy standards. In 2010, Oxford's 7 year olds ranked worst in Britain for Reading and Writing in Key Stage One tests at primary school.