I had an Interesting drive to work today. I’m already
hearing rumblings on Radio 4 that the English GCSE results are worse this year
than in previous ones due to “harsher marking”.
Is this really the case? We shall see what the day brings
but it has made me think.
I read quite a lot of entries on forums, blogs, twitter and
even on good old Facebook. Some of these make me realise that the standard of
our written English is plummeting and it’s about time that something was done
about it. Maybe this is the starting point.
Let’s not blame the “harsher marking” for the failings of
the educational system (I’m not necessarily blaming teachers per se) in not
insisting that the quality of the written word be taken as an important part of
all written work regardless of the subject. The fact that the teacher ‘knows
what little Johnny means’ does not equip him for a life in the real world. When
I read something that is written in English by a native English speaker, I do
not expect to have to translate it before I can actually start reading it.
I don’t believe that I will ever make a career out of the
written word as I accept my command of it is not exactly up there with Stephen
Fry or Sir John Betjeman, but it’s not that bad. This is the reason why “50
Shades of Grey” is not making me a fortune right now. Of course there is also
the fact that I didn’t write it to be taken into account.
As I’ve said, we shall see what the day brings but perhaps
this will give some opportunities. There are a few.
The first opportunity is to blame the exam board(s) for
changing their marking strategy to bring the overall standard down. My
understanding is that they are working to the same standards that were
introduced a couple of years ago.
The second opportunity is to blame the teachers for allowing
standards to fall. Whilst this could be a possibility, I don’t favour it. I
believe that teachers continue to work to the same guidelines that they have had
for some time. So that probably isn’t it.
The third opportunity is to blame the kids. I’m not a parent
(well I have a seventeen year old step son but I’m not convinced that counts)
so this is harder for me to comment on. I will say this though. When I, like
many of you reading this, were younger I (sadly) didn’t have the multi-media
based distractions that abound today. So, I read and watched documentaries with
my dad and did any number of other things that gave me wider exposure to our
great language. I don’t know if this is still the case for the majority of kids
out there or not. With that in mind, I wouldn’t be prepared to blame the kids either.
However, there is certainly something wrong with the way the
written and spoken word is being treated – and maybe today’s results mark the
beginning of the stop of the rot. Maybe.
There is a fourth opportunity. It is that we assimilate
these results into our collective consciousness and all use this opportunity to
forge a change in how we treat our great language.
Let me leave you with these.
Imagine you are on holiday tomorrow, taking advantage of the
bank holiday to extend your weekend. Are you really having an extra day “of”
work?
Is it really “there” ball?
You will not see me in “abit”.
There is not “alot” of them.
It is not taller “then” me.
It is not me “to”.
Good grief I could go on and on but then a no dat u fink i
is rantin. And when it comes down to it, perhaps I am, but God knows someone
should.
#justsayin. Lol
