Jeffrey Shaw Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 But you too could derive satisfaction from knowing about the history of English usage. That way, the pupils and you gain immensely. History makes more sense when one sees its repercussions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Good mood Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 English is the finest language in the world; how do Swedish people and Japanese people generally communicate? in English of course. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hammerstein Posted December 13, 2012 Author Share Posted December 13, 2012 But you too could derive satisfaction from knowing about the history of English usage. That way, the pupils and you gain immensely. History makes more sense when one sees its repercussions. That's precisely what i'm saying - the spellings would make sense if teachers had the knowledge, time and resources to put every single word in its historical and linguistic context but they don't have any of those things, and so what's left for many children is being told spellings without understanding why they are spelled that way. Personally i'm not sure if that many people would be overly fascinated by the subject. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cgksheff Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 I was merely pointing out my frustrations when I was faced with these questions in the classroom, and what it would take to give a satisfying answer to those questions in general. Perhaps you could start to use a good reference book to learn the answers to the questions instead of tapping away on here. If your preference is for the screen/keyboard, there are also substantial resources online to provide you with many of the answers as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hammerstein Posted December 13, 2012 Author Share Posted December 13, 2012 Perhaps you could start to use a good reference book to learn the answers to the questions instead of tapping away on here. If your preference is for the screen/keyboard, there are also substantial resources online to provide you with many of the answers as well. I know how to do basic reaearch, thanks. I started the thread because I thought it generate an interesting conversation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cgksheff Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 I know how to do basic reaearch, thanks. I started the thread because I thought it generate an interesting conversation. ... and then you went on to describe your own shortcomings. Now you appear a little petulant as well. Are you in the right profession? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bypassblade Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 Having trained as a primary school teacher I'm aware of the absolute ballache of trying to explain the logic behind our spellings to children. I've been wondering recently though - if writing is largely for communication then is there any issue involved in changing our written language so that there is a consistent correspondence between letters and sounds? That is, every time a certain sound appears in our language it is expressed using the same letters. I figure that way children can begin to work out how to spell words based on logic rather than what is largely rote. I'm aware that any change would involve a slow process, but any thoughts? In a word no, but that doesn't stop people from trying, I mean texting has turned people into lazy spellers as it is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
altus Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 I, and everyone else at my school, learnt to read and write using the Initial Teaching Alphabet (a kind of abridged phonetic alphabet) which was touted at the time as making it easier to learn to read and write. Something like this could perhaps be re-introduced as an aid to learning for those who have difficulty with the current system. A major drawback with it though was the difficulty some children had in transferring to standard English and, for me particularly, a tendency to still spell words how they are pronounced. I have a friend who is bad at spelling and also blames it on being taught ITA. @Hammerstien All languages evolve and develop. How would your system cope when your new English evolves in a way that deviates from the new rules? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Total Chaos Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 Dont worry, it will be phased out altogether by 2030. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hammerstein Posted December 13, 2012 Author Share Posted December 13, 2012 ... and then you went on to describe your own shortcomings. Yes, to explain how the subject became relevant to me and why I wanted to discuss the idea. It's important to be aware of shortcomings as it's the only way to improve. Now you appear a little petulant as well. 'Perhaps you could start to use a good reference book to learn the answers to the questions instead of tapping away on here.' I felt I was being judged. Are you in the right profession? Yes, I believe so. ---------- Post added 13-12-2012 at 18:58 ---------- All languages evolve and develop. How would your system cope when your new English evolves in a way that deviates from the new rules? I'm not sure really, although I would imagine that it would cope in the same way the scientific curriculum copes - by adapting in light of new information. I'm not talking about a 'new english' - it would be the same language but with there being a consistent phoneme/grapheme correspondence. I think it would be largely unfeasible to bring about to be honest - I just thought it would be an interest idea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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