Most Inarticulate Generation

[JW10631]

Whatevergirl, you are 100% correct.

I despise the “dumbing-down” of the English language. Thank “slopular” culture and a lazy education bureaucracy, as well as lazy parents.

Make kids learn English - and Latin, too. that way, they can understand the Romance languages.

I hate text messaging.

 

[Silyosha]

Ughhh…
Does nobody care what they sound like anymore? I hear this stuff all the time at my highschool (I’m a sophomore). It’s horrendous.
It’s like parents aren’t willing to teach their children to speak the English language anymore. How sloppy.

 

[jmcrae]

I call my kids dudes, and I am quite articlulate. Not sure why this is a problem.

A “dude” is a male employee at a cattle ranch, apprenticed to a cow hand. It just sounds really bizarre to call a child (especially a girl) a “dude.”

 

[LilyElain]

In reading Whatever Girl’s post in this thread, and your response to it, I am convinced that homeschooling is the perfect antidote to the indoctrination and agenda-driven teachers present in some of our schools.

And I love your signature quote. I am an avid Jane Austen fan!

Thanks! I do have to say, I was only homeschooled from 1st -5th grade…but since those are some of the most important formative years, I would say what I learned then formed me for everything else… I did literally have to fight (verbally) my way through both my Catholic Middle School and my Protestant highschool which then allowed me to become very strong in my faith…and keep my high vocabulary levels…

 

[LilyElain]

*Aw…that is wonderful, though…a blessing, indeed.

When my kids used to ask me…how do you know so many vocab words mom? (they can’t even say vocabULARY LOL) I would simply reply…READING. READ READ and READ s’more. That is what will build your vocabularies. Read the newspaper, articles online, read books…and your vocabulary will naturally build! They both heeded the advice, and they like using all kinds of colorful words to say simple things, now. It is not necessary to speak using large words all of the time, but you will know what they mean when someone in the course of your life, throws one out there.

I love to read though, I think that the internet and video games, while it/they can be fun, etc, has caused our youth to become bored with reading books. (on average, there are exceptions like you, Miss Lily. :tiphat*

Aww, thanks! I do love to read. I think reading should be introduced early and encouraged, and then video/ computer games become the recreation, not the constant…

 

[Lost_Wanderer]

So true Whatever girl~

I think many people say I was born from the wrong century because I speak and write much better than my generation…
I was raised on the classics from a young age, and because of my homeschooling at the time, learned lessons from my great-grandmothers etiquette and handwriting books! Perhaps that is why I am so old fashioned in my values…

Meh, I wouldn’t say that “classic writing” should always be required when writing. Even getting a grasp of crude lingos such as surfer, gangsta, gamer, and even comic book geek can have its use in fiction. You just need to put it in its right setting.

That’s no excuse for trashy grammar though but still, don’t look down on modern slang completely.

 

[Lutheranteach]

Like totally. You know what I am saying?

I hear this a lot at my college. Makes me cringe.

I correct such things in the classroom on a daily basis when it comes to the spoken word.

The one thing I am starting to see are text abbreviations in papers kids turn in. (That doesn’t fly with me and I penalize it heavily.)

I teach Jane Austen’s works every year and I don’t like them.

I call my class ladies and gentlemen. At the middle school level and above I generally call on my students in a more formal manner: Mr. Smith, Miss Doe. One-on-one conversations I’ll usually use their first names.

 

[Jersey_Jeepster]

I correct such things in the classroom on a daily basis when it comes to the spoken word.

The one thing I am starting to see are text abbreviations in papers kids turn in. (That doesn’t fly with me and I penalize it heavily.)

I teach Jane Austen’s works every year and I don’t like them.

I call my class ladies and gentlemen. At the middle school level and above I generally call on my students in a more formal manner: Mr. Smith, Miss Doe. One-on-one conversations I’ll usually use their first names.

I figured that the text message language would soon infiltrate the classroom and homework assignments. That both angers me and frightens me. I feel that all this technology serves mostly to turn people into zombies. People are supposed to be on the cell phone all day, text messaging all day, listening to music all day on their iPod, or watching movies all day on their portable DVD players or on their cell phones.

The fact that kids are using text message language in their homework further strengthens the point that we are becoming lazy and less articulate.

 

[sharmin]

A “dude” is a male employee at a cattle ranch, apprenticed to a cow hand. It just sounds really bizarre to call a child (especially a girl) a “dude.”

And a kid is a goat. Do you think it’s bizarre to call children kids?

 

[jmcrae]

And a kid is a goat. Do you think it’s bizarre to call children kids?

Calling a child a “kid” is common slang, but the image that comes to mind is of a grown man with dirty coveralls and a cowboy hat, when you hear the word “dude.” Maybe if a little boy is dressed up in his cowboy outfit you might call him “dude” but otherwise it’s just a very strange thing to call a child.

 

[Lycorth]

Butbutbutbutbutbutbut, this is progress! Now that we’ve gotten rid of those boring old rules and just let everyone do what they feel is right, we’re progressing!

Behold, the fallout of Modernism.

 

[sharmin]

Calling a child a “kid” is common slang, but the image that comes to mind is of a grown man with dirty coveralls and a cowboy hat, when you hear the word “dude.”

Honestly, regardless of what image comes to your mind personally, dude is still common slang, just as ‘kid’ is.

Of course, in the grand scheme of life, this doesn’t really matter, but the inconsistency did make me chuckle.

Don’t you wish the use of the word ‘dude’ was the biggest debate in life? God bless.

 

[jmcrae]

Honestly, regardless of what image comes to your mind personally, dude is still common slang, just as ‘kid’ is.

Of course, in the grand scheme of life, this doesn’t really matter, but the inconsistency did make me chuckle.

It’s not “inconsistent” - this is the first time in my whole life I ever heard of anyone calling a child a “dude.” It has to be a brand new thing that someone made up. I’ve heard of slangy people calling them “kids,” but never “dudes.”

Don’t you wish the use of the word ‘dude’ was the biggest debate in life? God bless.

 

[sharmin]

It’s not “inconsistent” - this is the first time in my whole life I ever heard of anyone calling a child a “dude.” It has to be a brand new thing that someone made up. I’ve heard of slangy people calling them “kids,” but never “dudes.”

Maybe it’s a regional thing. I don’t know. I wonder if people were up in arms way back in the day when people started using kid as slang. Life is funny, isn’t it?

 

[Magdalena09]

Maybe it’s a regional thing. I don’t know. I wonder if people were up in arms way back in the day when people started using kid as slang. Life is funny, isn’t it?

Yes.

Dude has been around quite a while and I don’t think of “dude ranches”, but think of surfer lingo who used the word heavily in the 60s and 70s.

Word meanings sometimes change over time.

History of the word “dude”

 

[sharmin]

Yes.

Dude has been around quite a while and I don’t think of “dude ranches”, but think of surfer lingo who used the word heavily in the 60s and 70s.

Word meanings sometimes change over time.

History of the word “dude”

Thanks for that. It was an interesting read!!

 

[John21652]

Yikes, really? How funny! It is a shame, the english language, old english actually, is quite poetic. My ancestors came from Italy…they learned the language. Why can’t americans learn it? lol I think that it’s sad though…we jest…but really? We are losing our competitive edge in the world…because not enough educators are challenging our youth.

Hi there whatever girl.
You might be interested to know that this is just not an American problem. Way downunder, all the grownups are worried sill about what’s happening to the latest crop of youngsters. Texting, chatting, all in abbreviated form and usually horribly monosyllabic. That idea of yours that not enough educators are chellenging our youth. Let’s swing the thinking around 180 degrees and have a fresh look at your idea. If you study the stats, it would seem that every kid from around twelve and up has one and a half mobile phones. We, the elders, have put into the hands of kids technology that they are not emotionally and psychologically equiped to handle properly. With this technology we have created an instant gratification generation. They want their answers and responses at light speed. That is partly why they text in monosyllables. No long written responses for this generation, complete with apostrophes and commas. No way! However, we have also given them a tool with which they can operate under ‘the radar’. They have been allowed to create their own little world away from the prying eyes of their elders. In fact, they have created a whole new moral universe and you can’t even see it. Now that’s in stark contrast to how we grew up, when mum and dad knew just about everything we did and where you could hardly even have a telephone conversation in private. Today, the kids have total privacy, on their phones, on their computers.

Now, with this going on, how much more of a battle have educators to retain the interest of a generation which expects instant gratification and demands privacy. Today, if someone doesn’t like having to study Shakespeare, he/she will send a text to someone saying shksp sux and before you know it, peer group pressure has Shakespeare’s name dragged through the dust. Before they even open a text book, the word will be out that shksp sux. So what hope has a teacher got? I would go so far as to say that todays educators are still trying to figure out how to challenge a generation that has just about everything, in terms of technology and privacy and peer group pressure.

I spent all of 2008 and half of 2009 working in a Boarding School’s boarding house. The addictive use of mobile phones was staggering. Just staggering. In fact a rule was instituted that all phones had to be handed in before bedtime because a lot of kids would text the night away. Similarly with laptops. They had to be handed in because a few would watch DVDs all night!! The other factor is that these kids create their own moral universe, out of sight of adults. I read some stuff on confiscated phones that would curl your hair and the phones belonged to 12, 13 and 14 yr olds!! If they don’t like a teacher, they let the entire school know so and so sux. They reinforce one another’s negativities. They reinforce one anothers angst and anger and outrage and there isn’t an adult to put it into perspective because adults are excluded from their little world. They text while watching TV, in between mouthfuls at mealtime (if they can get away with it) and in the classroom (again, if they can get away with it) and they text while having a face to face conversation with someone else. Sheesh, I’d be surprised if they don’t need thumb transplants by the time they are 21. So much for phones, I haven’t even begun on email…

 

[TraderTif]

A “dude” is a male employee at a cattle ranch, apprenticed to a cow hand. It just sounds really bizarre to call a child (especially a girl) a “dude.”

Perhaps “dudette”?

 

[marytk]

Maybe it’s a regional thing. I don’t know. I wonder if people were up in arms way back in the day when people started using kid as slang. Life is funny, isn’t it?

While “kid” was in full use when I was young, I was taught that it was not proper to call a child a young goat. I would imagine a generation before it was less acceptable

 

[Realist]

*I see the deterioration, of the love of reading, and teachers don’t seem to promote a love for the classics, anymore…like when I was growing up. :bighanky: Modern novels just lack something that classics do… *

Should teachers be promoting “a love for the classics”? I was under the impression that it is the English teacher’s job to teach critical thinking, which is often taught through the lens of the English canon. What point is there in teaching love for the canon? Also, how would one go about doing that?

I’m also curious about you think classic novels have that modern novels lack and why you think that “something” is significant. In addition, you seem to lump thousands of years of literature into a single category: classics. When does this category begin and end for you? Do you really think no modern literature will be canonized? Also, do you believe the canon accurately reflects all literature produced in the past? Or is it maybe that, because of the canon, you are able to clear away the brush of the past’s less successful literature and immediately step into the magnificent jungle of masterpieces? If the latter is true, consider exerting more patience with modern literature. It’ll take a little extra work to find those gems, but they are there.

On the other hand, I do agree with you that America’s youth is becoming less able to grasp the foundation of the English language. However, do not delude yourself into believing that this problem extends only to our current crop of kids. Since the 70s, all levels of American schooling have deemphasized grammar and syntax. The rational behind this was to allow students to focus more on the development of ideas. However, that was foolish, because ideas cannot be divorced from grammar and syntax. Hopefully we will eventually reverse course.