No more language and grammar in schools

As I understand the article, grammar will be incorporated into the other two papers. Learners will be penalised in those two papers for grammatical errors.
 
You mean up to now they've still been teaching kids how to spell and contruct sentences properly? It seems like they've stopped that a long time ago, if you've read anything written by a schoolkid recently.

She said while the approach was academically a good one, university professors were noticing that students’ academic writing skills were not of a high standard.
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Understate much?

But yes, go ahead, dumb down everything further. Idiocracy is coming, I tell you.

This post was brought to you by Brawndo.
 
Jamal said:
As I understand the article, grammar will be incorporated into the other two papers. Learners will be penalised in those two papers for grammatical errors.
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^This. I think this is good. When I was in school you were expected to have mastered proper grammar, sentence construction, punctuation etc. by the end of grade 9. We can't have matrics wasting time with that basic stuff when they should be learning how to critique bodies of work, understand themes/imagery and so on. Proper use of grammar when writing essays by grade 12 should be a given.
 
I ain't sure this a bad thing cuz ..

... Just kidding. Seriously, it's not necessarily a bad thing if they truly do teach it early and integrate it into the other courses.

I remember back to a maths exam I had in school. When I finished, I felt really good about it. When I got my exam back, the instructor had taken points off for a spelling mistake. I tried to complain about losing points for spelling on a maths exam, but it was of no use. He simply replied that in the real world people don't segment life between maths and language. It was a lesson learned, and one they should consider for today's schools.
 
Knyro said:
When I was in school you were expected to have mastered proper grammar,
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When I was in school you had to get over 50% to pass.

When I was in school anyone who got 30% for a subject was ridiculed - now it's a pass mark.

The current pass requirements are a very poor joke.
 
dkhaley said:
I ain't sure this a bad thing cuz ..

... Just kidding. Seriously, it's not necessarily a bad thing if they truly do teach it early and integrate it into the other courses.

I remember back to a maths exam I had in school. When I finished, I felt really good about it. When I got my exam back, the instructor had taken points off for a spelling mistake. I tried to complain about losing points for spelling on a maths exam, but it was of no use. He simply replied that in the real world people don't segment life between maths and language. It was a lesson learned, and one they should consider for today's schools.
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I had the same reply.

I was penalised for not crossing my t's or dotting my i's. Thank goodness I'm not a secretary or someone that has to write a lot. The PC dots the I’s and crosses my t’s.
I wish I did better on my grammar though. I cannot believe that they want to the corporate world too employ the people they are creating. Or maybe they feel that the work force does not have to read and write?
 
Very creative title that, absolute rubbish as well. If you read the article it makes the changes quite clear. This doesn't have to be a bad thing, I'm sure most good schools could even be better off for it, it depends what happens at poorer schools and how they handle teaching grammar.
 
The standard of grammar which was displayed by my first year students over the last couple of years indicates to me that MORE teaching of grammar is needed. Not less!

It is incredibly frustrating, as University lecturers, to find ourselves spending vast amounts of time catching students up on basics that should have been taught at school. It's like we are trying to build a house on a foundation that is missing huge chunks.

In my opinion, the standard is not currently high enough to try something like this.

Apparently I'm not the only one of this opinion.

She said while the approach was academically a good one, university professors were noticing that students’ academic writing skills were not of a high standard.
Click to expand...
 
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Greylor said:
It is incredibly frustrating, as University lecturers, to find ourselves spending vast amounts of time catching students up on basics that should have been taught at school. It's like we are trying to build a house on a foundation that is missing huge chunks.
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What do you teach if you don't mind my asking?
 
Greylor said:
The standard of grammar which was displayed by my first year students over the last couple of years indicates to me that MORE teaching of grammar is needed. Not less!

It is incredibly frustrating, as University lecturers, to find ourselves spending vast amounts of time catching students up on basics that should have been taught at school. It's like we are trying to build a house on a foundation that is missing huge chunks.

In my opinion, the standard is not currently high enough to try something like this.

Apparently I'm not the only one of this opinion.
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I heard this exact sentiment expressed on 702 today also by a varsity lecturer.
 
Ten years ago, twenty years ago, thirty years ago, professors were also lamenting the decline of academic standards etc.
 
Greylor said:
The standard of grammar which was displayed by my first year students over the last couple of years indicates to me that MORE teaching of grammar is needed. Not less!

It is incredibly frustrating, as University lecturers, to find ourselves spending vast amounts of time catching students up on basics that should have been taught at school. It's like we are trying to build a house on a foundation that is missing huge chunks.

In my opinion, the standard is not currently high enough to try something like this.

Apparently I'm not the only one of this opinion.
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Why would you teach grammar to a home language speaker? It's a waste of time if they have not learnt to write down what they already speak by grade 9
 
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Alan said:
What do you teach if you don't mind my asking?
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I won't say exactly what I teach (anonymity and all), but I will say that I teach/taught at first and second year level at a major instution for an industry-specific management degree, teaching general business management principles as well as management for a particular division of the industry.
 
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what's the point of teaching grammar anyway, have you seen these children on their cellphones. there's a new language these days, not taught in schools and education is completely ignored by the kids of today anyway. they scrape through with 30% and think they passed with distinctions.
 
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