About the new curriculum: Great idea.
At present, all the curriculum is doing is testing the ability of people to memorise pre-written essays.
I mean I know a few people who got their teachers to help them write practice essays, and if you ask them about the essays (e.g. "what themes are in your essay") they shrug and sayt hey have no idea.
I think Rudd's new plan will go a long way towards making the HSC English exams more about actual English.
And as the person above me said, proper grammar does stay with you for life and will help you in all aspects. Imagine going to a job interview and speaking in MSN language. That would be pretty crazy.
Lewa said:
Does anyone else think that the main reason why grammar and spelling is so bad in our generation and possibly generations after us, is because of the internet, online games and mobile phones but mostly chat programs like MSN and Skype?
I mean c'mon we have to shorten everything to LOL and BRB things like that. I know a kid at our school that leaves out some letters in words just so he can make it quicker to text his girlfriend... Soon we will be saying it and it will only be further "advertised" in media productions. I already know that shows reference it (Californication) and there are probably numerous kids TV shows that are hanging onto the idea that it will get more TV ratings and money.
I'm grateful that K-Rudd's government is making grammar and spelling more focused in schools because in my eyes I see that we are butchering the English language.
Oh and about that 90s vs 90's thing. 90's was the way it was spelt in my parents day... so what is right the old folks' way or our way? Many people spell it that way cause that's the way they have been taught. If it can be understood then it's alright in my opinion but not when it gets to the point where we are deliberately making up new "words" that just don't make sense at all... Imagine if some foreign person who didn't understand english or more specifically people who don't understand internet speak and you told them PAOSDFSDFP... Really, why?
Totally agree with you about the shift in focus - it is pretty appalling to see the level of language employed by some people in our generation, and I think the internet is just making everyone lazier.
And regarding the 90s vs 90's discussion:
I always thought it was written as
'90s, with the apostrophe being used in place of the first "19"