Have you noticed a decline in writing skills?
“I love Agnostic.com because of the intelligent, wise and funny posts,” I told an atheist friend four months ago. Since then, I have been shocked by poor writing in many posts.
Writing is a way to communicate your thoughts, feelings and opinions. It’s an essential skill in everyday life.
Many posts pose vague questions. Scratches head.
Obscure Acronyms. Often I ask what it means. Men get defensive. It's not worth asking.
For decades, American schools have not taught writing composition. As a college professor, I was shocked by students’ poor writing ability.
“It’s not just that students aren’t demonstrating critical thinking skills in their writing, basic competencies like proper syntax, spelling, and even proper structure like paragraph indentation and how to cite sources are being done very poorly,” college professor Azadeh Aalai, Ph.D. wrote in “Why Can’t College Students Write Anymore?” Psychology Today, Feb. 21, 2014.
Other reasons citied in studies are the rise of social media and the decline in reading books. This week I learned a new word, “anodyne,” from a Time magazine article on the wonderful Netflix series, “Queer Eyes, Season 2.” Anodyne means “anything that relives distress or pain.”
Like a carpenter studying how expert carpenters build, I learn good writing by reading great books. Reading also builds my vocabulary.
Since 2006, as a volunteer college mentor, I help students write essays for college and scholarship applications. These are excellent students. But they struggle with writing. I thought it was because English is their second language. They also aren’t learning writing skills in school.
So, I teach students writing and organization, to carry forward in college and life.
Your thoughts?
Here's my daughter, Claire, at five months, turning a page with her foot. We read to her from birth.
Starting at age three, Claire was only allowed to watch three, 30-minute TV shows per week. Claire got to pick the shows. She never played video games.
At 18, Claire went on a European art tour with her artist dad. When she became bored in art museums, she read books. Claire is on the right.
Claire, 28, still enjoys reading and is an excellent writer. There's hope.
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33 comments (26 - 33)
Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.All of the students save their essays on Google Cloud. Applying for scholarships and colleges, they write 50-60 essays.
"I used the essays we wrote for a scholarship that paid for six months in Florence, Italy!" Teresa said last week. We met for coffee.
Next week, I will take the last four girls I mentored on a short, easy hike. Teresa suggested it. They are friends. I'll make chocolate brownies as a treat. We'll have fun.
LiterateHiker
Level 9
June 24, 2018
2
Writing can be difficult as many times I go to write something before I have thought about it. Sometimes ideas don't flow into the paper. I would think the task would be easier since I did spend five years at a university studying philosophy, lots of reading and writing. Found I have a learning disorder. I wonder how people now says function with the skills they have. Reading is just not done unless there is something that needs to be studied for work, or an interest. Think I proved my point as I talked about myself, but I do find the educational system different from when I was in school, graduated high school 1969.
dalefvictor
Level 8
June 23, 2018
2
My thoughts about what exactly?
I'm no English professor and English has never been my favorite subject and although I taught English to Germans for a few years, I don't consider myself a linguist.
My kids can't read cursive very easily. They don't write anymore, they type. They are learning sentence structure and stuff (sort of, they're ten). I don't think I'm qualified to answer.
AstralSmoke
Level 8
June 23, 2018
2
Cursive is overrated.
AstralSmoke,
I was asking for your thoughts about my post.
@LiterateHiker Of course, and I answered the best I could. I apologize for it being so inadequate. but I did the best I could (within my experienced realm. 
)
Hemingway said, "Write hard and clear about what hurts."
LiterateHiker
Level 9
June 24, 2018
0
The decline of writing skills.
It would be elitist to suggest that ordinary people are to blame for a substandard education system.
A highly literate workforce is of no use to the ruling class who require a reliable and steady source of compliant labour to work in their factories. A literate, intelligent and aware electorate would pose problems.
I used to tease some people who exhibited poor written English. Now I feel ashamed for doing so.
Literacy is a class issue.
Ellatynemouth
Level 8
June 24, 2018
1
r" kids, and its a wasted effort. 
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