Spelling these days...

**Edbear** · 19th February 2010, 18:22

Originally Posted by mister.koz

Thanks Mom, i been a tryin

Hey, t'aint nobody more tryin' than me!

(Please note correct use of apostrophes.)

**tigertim20** · 19th February 2010, 18:29

Originally Posted by Edbear

In recent threads there has been much posted about spelling and grammar. One poster said his teacher wasn't concerned whether he could read or write!

Language standards have continued to decline and we have now reached the stage where adults in positions of responsibility and in the public arena can't spell.

It's fine for the young one's who don't understand the implications to say, "Who cares?", however the ramifications for society are profound and long lasting. Communcation is the life-blood of society and effective communication is especially important in business. A business not able to communicate properly is going to suffer and fail and this is even more critical in the international arena where people expect to be presented with correct language, especially where our language is not their primary language.

Having a son-in-law who speaks four languages fluently and gets by in a couple more and who immigrated here from Germany, has impressed upon me the need to be accurate. His international business connections has lead to me dealing with overseas companies and has opened business opportunities for me here. We are now forming business aggreements with international and overseas companies and have begun importing product from Germany with more to come.

Were I not able to communicate accurately and effectively I would never be taken seriously and would never have the opportunities offered to me thus far. The company owners and managers I meet with need to be impressed, not only with dress and knowledge, but as importantly with clear, accurate and easily understood communication - language standards of the highest order.

As an employer, my son-in-law expects clear and accurate communication from his employees as mistakes and lack of clarity cost him time and money. He goes to great lengths to communicate efectively with staff so that they know what they need to do and he expects they will communicate clearly and effectively with customers. Many of his clients are of the "upper class", by that I mean well-off business people who expect the highest standards of workmanship and communication. Jobs he contracts for are at the high end of the market including multi-story commercial businesses in the city. As such the employees have nice shirts provided and are expected to be as clean and well dressed as the type of work allows, including shaved. If he empoyed a worker with a beard the worker would need to be well groomed, not scruffy.

The employees are often the "face" of the company and as such the company is judged by the conduct and speech of the employee. The reputation of the company can be severely damaged by poorly spoken, slovenly employees and there is only a set number of times a boss can repair damage before losing what may be a key client, costing the company a lot of money as word spreads about, or even from, the disgruntled customer.

It is not vanity to endeavour to speak and write correctly, nor is it of no consequence to refuse to learn how. It makes good sense in both a personal and business application as relationships are built or destroyed by the standard of communication. Effective language skills open up opportunities denied to those who cannot speak, read or write properly.

Rant over...

hmm, I think people often over estimate the effect of the degredation of spelling and grammar these days, it might make a written post or message take a tad longer to be read, but provided one can understand, or infer what the poster is saaying, I dont think it matters. Im saying that provided you can say what you are saying, in a manner that those around you can understand, then typos and over imperfections in ones expression of the English language don't really matter.

As for it having degraded, perhaps people should look at how English was spoken in 1950, and 1800, and so on.. it has changed over time, as all languages do. Indeed you will find different 'dialects' of English in different pockets of New Zealand, the same applies to other countries ans languages too. historically, neither written nor spoken English has been a static example of communication. it does and will continue to change over time.

In other words, get over it!!!

**Edbear** · 19th February 2010, 18:40

Originally Posted by tigertim20

hmm, I think people often over estimate the effect of the degredation of spelling and grammar these days, it might make a written post or message take a tad longer to be read, but provided one can understand, or infer what the poster is saaying, I dont think it matters. Im saying that provided you can say what you are saying, in a manner that those around you can understand, then typos and over imperfections in ones expression of the English language don't really matter.

As for it having degraded, perhaps people should look at how English was spoken in 1950, and 1800, and so on.. it has changed over time, as all languages do. Indeed you will find different 'dialects' of English in different pockets of New Zealand, the same applies to other countries ans languages too. historically, neither written nor spoken English has been a static example of communication. it does and will continue to change over time.

In other words, get over it!!!

English is a living language and naturally changes over time, that is why it is becoming the world language at the cost of the other languages. Also due to the British Empire's world-wide influence, of course.

However, what I talk about is the unecessary degradation of language skills to the detriment of the speaker/writer. Laziness and immature arrogance simply means fewer real-life opportunities for those who cannot read/write and speak properly and that they are not taken seriously, to their disadvantage. You would simply not be able to do what those like myself can do unless you can use correct English, both written and verbal.

If I reverted to your level of language, I would very quickly lose my business.

**steve_t** · 19th February 2010, 18:48

Originally Posted by Edbear

English is a living language and naturally changes over time, that is why it is becoming the world language at the cost of the other languages. Also due to the British Empire's world-wide influence, of course.

However, what I talk about is the unecessary degradation of language skills to the detriment of the speaker/writer. Laziness and immature arrogance simply means fewer real-life opportunities for those who cannot read/write and speak properly and that they are not taken seriously, to their disadvantage. You would simply not be able to do what those like myself can do unless you can use correct English, both written and verbal.

If I reverted to your level of language, I would very quickly lose my business.

So I'm not the only one rolling my eyes at the Oxford English Dictionary people adding words to the dictionary like "unfriend" meaning to remove someone from being your friend on a social networking site like facebook/bebo, or "tramp stamp" which might as well be a target

LOL

**MikeL** · 19th February 2010, 19:20

Originally Posted by smoky

FFS?

every one knows that, it was posted as light hearted humour

Quite so. How can I have been so naive as to think some people might have found some aspect of psycholinguistics genuinely interesting?

I'll try not to be so pedantic in future.

**Ratti** · 19th February 2010, 19:32

Originally Posted by Edbear

PS. There are two typo's in the above...

and an incorrect use ...twice, same word + another one -different word

**Ratti** · 19th February 2010, 19:41

Originally Posted by Edbear

Hey, t'aint nobody more tryin' than me!

(Please note correct use of apostrophes.)

Is aint a real word?

**Dave Lobster** · 19th February 2010, 19:47

Originally Posted by Mom

I have met many really fantastic teachers, but far to, far to many that were not.

Too many?

8 9 10

**Edbear** · 19th February 2010, 21:01

Originally Posted by Ratti

Is aint a real word?

Ain't my day, today, is it...?

Ain't
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ain't is a colloquialism and a contraction originally used for "am not", but also used for "is not", "are not", "has not", or "have not" in the common vernacular. In some dialects it is also used as a contraction of "do not", "does not", and "did not" (e.g. I ain't know that). The word is a perennial issue in English usage. It is a word that is widely used by many people, but its use is commonly considered to be improper.[1]

**Ratti** · 19th February 2010, 21:04

well there we have it...must be correct 'cos Edbear dun got it offa wikipedia

**Edbear** · 19th February 2010, 21:09

Originally Posted by Ratti

well there we have it...must be correct 'cos Edbear dun got it offa wikipedia

And Mirriam Webster...

Main Entry: ain't
Pronunciation: \ˈānt\
Etymology: contraction of are not
Date: 1749
1 : am not : are not : is not
2 : have not : has not
3 : do not : does not : did not —used in some varieties of Black English

usage Although widely disapproved as nonstandard and more common in the habitual speech of the less educated, ain't in senses 1 and 2 is flourishing in American English. It is used in both speech and writing to catch attention and to gain emphasis . It is used especially in journalistic prose as part of a consistently informal style . This informal ain't is commonly distinguished from habitual ain't by its frequent occurrence in fixed constructions and phrases . In fiction ain't is used for purposes of characterization; in familiar correspondence it tends to be the mark of a warm personal friendship. It is also used for metrical reasons in popular songs . Our evidence shows British use to be much the same as American.

You're a hard woman, Ratti... But I's shore ur wuvvable anyways...

**smoky** · 19th February 2010, 23:27

Originally Posted by MikeL

Quite so. How can I have been so naive as to think some people might have found some aspect of psycholinguistics genuinely interesting?

I'll try not to be so pedantic in future.

You actually take this shit on KB seriously enough to describe it as a study on the relationship between language and psychology, or think anything in this thread actually bears any resemblance to the study of the origins and development of linguistics?
You're F***ing cracked you are

You need to ride more and think less

**golfmade** · 20th February 2010, 02:49

Originally Posted by Edbear

Funnily enough, some of the best speakers of English I have ever met are South Africans and I personally find their accent quite pleasant. Blacks from Sudan I've met are very nicely spoken and extremely courteous, (not to mention being among the most attractive people I've seen too.)

I didn't mean to imply all people from South Africa, but just as a few examples. Some of my best friends here are from South Africa but English is their first language, Afrikaans second, where as the ones I've met that I could hardly understand English wasn't their main language, Afrikaans was.