Roadkill on the Information Superhighway

Campus Report ^ | March 30, 2009 | Deborah Lambert

[bs9021]

Roadkill on the Information Superhighway

by: Deborah Lambert, March 30, 2009

Charlotte Allen reminded readers on mindingthecampus.com that when you hear the words “for the 21st century” in conjunction with an educational topic, “you know it’s time to run for cover.”

Here’s why: During a recent conference of English teachers in San Francisco, a report released by the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) suggested that teachers should “quit emphasizing essays and formal papers” . . .and “bring 21st-century writing habits into the classroom.”

Allen noted that as recently as five years ago, this would have meant “blogging, e-mailing, and setting up your own website.” Now it means “texting, twittering and Facebook.”

Emory University professor Mark Bauerlein pointed out in a recent blog that these 21st century communications forms require no research and aren’t graded. Moreover, the NCTE “aims to ennoble leisure writing, to set it on the same level as academic writing,” he said....

[OneWingedShark]

Yep. We are now seeing the discarding of things like, grammar, spelling, syntax, punctuation. This will end well. [/sarc]

Why punctuation matters:
Comma:
“Let’s eat, Charlie!”
“Let’s eat Charlie!”

Period, Exclamation, and Question mark:
“You’re gay.”
“You’re gay!”
“You’re gay?”

Why capitalization matters:
“I helped my uncle Jack off a horse.”
“I helped my uncle jack off a horse.”

Why spelling matters, even/especially if it is a word:
“I find that roping cattle is great fun.”
“I find that raping cattle is great fun.”

Why syntax matters:
“I’m so afraid.”
“I’m afraid so.”