Novelist teaches freshman writing, is shocked by students’ inability to construct basic sentences Have we lost this essential skill and can it be recovered? y Michael Laser
October 13, 2015
Last year, I taught expository writing to freshmen at a nearby university. (The name of the school isn’t relevant here; this article reflects my own views on teaching writing, not the university’s.) What I saw disturbed me: a few of my students expressed their ideas well, but most of them couldn’t write clear, grammatically correct sentences.
http://hechingerreport.org/novelist-teaches-freshman-writing-is-shocked-by-students-inability-to-construct-basic-sentences/
I believe that clear thinking and clear writing go hand in hand. It's hard to have one without the other.
Just the other day, someone approached me and asked, "Do you have the ... you know?"
That is not an effective way to initiate a conversation. What were they thinking? I engaged and tried to find some clarity:
"I'm lost. What are we talking about? What are you looking for?"
"The ... thing" she explained.
If people cannot think well, then they will not write well.
And training people to writing with clarity and correctness is a time-honored method to help them think clearly.
Now, I'm sure my grammar isn't always perfect. It has been many decades since I had formal instruction in the subject (although I do read grammar and punctuation books for fun -- no guarantee that I'm absorbing all that I should absorb).
Government schools have let down several generations in this area, and I believe it is purposeful.