They are only so horrible because the people teaching them write that horribly... trust me, I know... I edit their stuff... sigh. We need teachers who can write to teach students how to write.
You have no idea how boggled your mind would be if you read some of the stuff teachers sat down and wrote and thought to themselves "This is acceptable for publication."
So, high school teachers are graduating students who are semi-literate. These semi-literate students somehow manage to move on to college.
WHY are *colleges* letting students (specially future teachers!!) slip through with sub-standard work? No teacher--at ANY level--should be allowed to set foot in a classroom full of students without at least a basic (and accurate) understanding of what they are teaching.
Oh, I've had this rant before... mostly when I was editing a book about writing by 2 professors who obviously couldn't write... It's best not to think about it... ;-)
WHY are *colleges* letting students (specially future teachers!!) slip through with sub-standard work?
We were instructed not to concern ourselves so much with "surface error" as much as the specific concerns of constructing an argument, building a strong rhetorical foundation, y'know, global level problems.
Inevitably, though, my classes would take 2-3 days to just go over the most common recurring surface errors that would pop up. If only because if I didn't I'd start picking up students and tossing them out windows.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Though some of the essays I'm seeing attached to college applications are right down there with those...
Ah, but...
Re: Ah, but...
I'm having a *very* difficult time picturing teachers sitting down, reading some of this stuff and saying "This is acceptable."
Boggles the mind.
Re: Ah, but...
Re: Ah, but...
So, high school teachers are graduating students who are semi-literate. These semi-literate students somehow manage to move on to college.
WHY are *colleges* letting students (specially future teachers!!) slip through with sub-standard work? No teacher--at ANY level--should be allowed to set foot in a classroom full of students without at least a basic (and accurate) understanding of what they are teaching.
Makes me shudder.
I'll stop talking now...
Re: Ah, but...
Re: Ah, but...
We were instructed not to concern ourselves so much with "surface error" as much as the specific concerns of constructing an argument, building a strong rhetorical foundation, y'know, global level problems.
Inevitably, though, my classes would take 2-3 days to just go over the most common recurring surface errors that would pop up. If only because if I didn't I'd start picking up students and tossing them out windows.
Re: Ah, but...
I wonder if it has to do with the commercialization of college? Sobell made a post today on her blog that I think ties in to this.