Why can't children(and many adults) spell nowadays?.

[margaret*e]

One of the words in the article is'definitely, frequently spelt on the boards as definately.

New one I've seen lately 'appauling'.

http://www.parentdish.co.uk/kids/why-cant-children-spell-today-advice-for-parents/?icid=maing-grid7|...

[cee-dee]

If you read the BBC news website regularly, you'll find loads of bad grammar, bad spelling and sentences which have obviously been edited but not proof read as they don't make sense.

[margaret*e]

I've found that in a lot of books I've read lately too.

[hernes-cave]

Teaching became more about 'getting ideas across' some years ago. It is no longer thought terribly  important  for words to be spelled correctly, as, it is assumed  people will know what is meant anyway. Unfortunately, this is bad news for any kids who perhaps want a career in any job that extensively uses the written word. I am afraid publishers, for instance, are still rather old-fashioned if they find enough errors; no matter how good your story may be, it is almost certainly going to be rejected.

Appauling, neckless, mirrow, carnt, aloud when it should be allowed...none of  the correct forms of these are difficult words.

[ed_blackadder_1]

My personal hate, is draw, as in chest of drawers.  I see it all the time at work, put that in the draw, are they having a raffle?

[al**bear]

 It will only get worse

as most people don't read any more

I was never a great speller, improved a bit when I started reading 'proper' books at 18

and has vastly improved , since I started going online.

But still make mistakes

 Your instead of You're seems to be becoming the norm ( a personal bug)

Only corrected one mistake , before posting LOL

[bhgardeners]

In my case it is because I am not a touch typist and struggle reading what I type on sites like Ebay which have loads of white spaces so I just don't bother too much.

In my childrens' case - one found out early that his teacher in year 3 couldn't spell(she couldn't do mental maths either!), ran everything past me and was introduced to dictionaries, the second believed everything her teachers told her, they introduced her to the spellchecker and now she cannot spell.

[lost.parrot]

Yes so important to have a functioning word processor at hand with spell check, whilst in labour and beyond
One has only to look at the standard of old  lol

[duck_a_lorange]

---

@al**bear wrote:

 It will only get worse

as most people don't read any more

I was never a great speller, improved a bit when I started reading 'proper' books at 18

and has vastly improved , since I started going online.

But still make mistakes

 Your instead of You're seems to be becoming the norm ( a personal bug)

Only corrected one mistake , before posting LOL

---

Absolutely true about not reading - though many people don't bother even to copy the correct spelling (from an official form, say) when it's right in front of them. 

It's also true that many more people are writing (in forums like these) who would never have set pen to paper a few years ago - and still wouldn't.

But it is still true, and has been for at least forty years, that education has been dumbed down relentlessly in order to "spare childrens' feelings".  Which means they have learned about a quarter of what their grandparents learned at school.

My pet bugbears - accept and except, affect and effect.  Two pairs of words that are constantly confused - and the difference and usage could be taught in five minutes, provided mistakes were corrected - which they never are, these days.

Some people say that spelling doesn't matter. It does, people need to communicate accurately.

[sir_arthur_strebe-grebling]

As well as the generation of stupid/ lazy teachers - either too stupid to know that they're wrong, or too lazy to care - I think that a large part of the problem is the 'me-me-me' culture. Children are taught, by their parent (parents if they're lucky) and teachers that all that matters is them. So they write their illiterate drivel, and expect the reader to put the work in to try to understand what is meant.

It's impolite at best, and at worst they will be ignored by those who can't be bothered to translate their gibberish into English. Certainly many potential employers won't tolerate it, and the youngsters then wonder why their clutch of dumbed-down A*s is not enough to get them a job.

[tommy.irene]

Hi Sir,A ..were have you been hidding..

[mustard-tree]

I programme pages for a friend`s website

Just as well I proof read it first.

His latest misspelt contribution is

Awquard

And he is no spring chicken either, he is 67

[violencejack-2008]

spelling is a difficult subject nowadays as there is ways of speed writing on phones as such we get lazy shorten words for ease rather than doing things in proper English, also with how people teach has changed its all well and good teaching English but after you finish school there's no reason to scrutinise our own spelling so we spell things in our head and when we dont get corrected we will presume we were correct and make similar mistakes

[cee-dee]

On here, people who mentioned bad spelling used to be referred to as "The Spelling Police", old hands will remember those days?

These days people seem to think it's "clever" or "something to be proud of" to make no effort to spell properly or even check their spellings. Any attempt to point out mistakes are often treated with derision, the attitude being "I know what I mean anyway".

Such people will/would demand that others such as vets, doctors, nurses or pharmacists spell correctly so they don't get prescribed the wrong medicines or treatment but don't care about their own sloppy spelling.

[bankhaunter]

When I was at school spelling was always corrected no matter the subject but apparently not so now, only in english classes.

[blackburn_stevie]

Like BH, when I was a kid, spelling was corrected wherever it was found to be wrong. It was only when our kids were going to school that we, as parents, discovered this idea of, "The meaning is more important than the spelling." But today's system takes the biscuit. If you correct somebody's spelling on a forum like this, you are looked on as a pedant and a Jobsworth type of person, so now, perfectionists like me tend to just let it slide, mostly because we like to see posts with poor spelling because it just shows us how superior we are to the plebs that can't spell.

Having said that, allowances must always be made for typing errors. That's one reason why I can't understand just how lazy a poster has to be if they can't click on the spellcheck button. I mean, how difficult can it be?

[bankhaunter]

That's one reason why I can't understand just how lazy a poster has to be if they can't click on the spellcheck button.

Eye halve a spelling chequer
It came with my pea sea
It plainly marques four my revue
Miss steaks eye kin knot sea.

Eye strike a key and type a word
And weight four it two say
Weather eye am wrong oar write
It shows me strait a weigh.

As soon as a mist ache is maid
It nose bee fore two long
And eye can put the error rite
Its rare lea ever wrong.

Eye have run this poem threw it
I am shore your pleased two no
Its letter perfect awl the weigh
My chequer tolled me sew.

[saasher2012]

Very clever!

[malacandran]

I can spell words correctly.

People who can't spell are dumb.  Innit.