We’ve been having interesting conversations in the comments on Kathleen McGeady’s guest post Teaching Commenting Skills on ‘is a formal structure or style for writing comments necessary?’
There’s always differing opinions on this type of topic.
So I’d love us to debate it in more detail while expanding the conversation to include blogs posts.
That way we’ll all gain for learning more about why we each take a different approach.
Please leave a comment to share your thoughts on any or all of the following:
- Should teachers be correcting grammar and spelling in student posts and comments? If you are correcting, how are you doing this?
- Is a formal structure or style for writing posts and comments necessary? Refer to Kathleen McGeady’s guest post Teaching Commenting Skills to see what we mean by formal structure.
- Is student age an important consideration?
- And, how do you communicate to your students what is required?
- How do you balance structure, developing writing skills while empowering student learning and motivating them to want to write?
- What other advice would you give educators who have just started to blog with their students?
Perhaps you might like to invite your students to share their thoughts?
- Would be interesting to know to what extent they do/don’t want structure?
- How do they feel about their grammar and spelling being corrected in posts and comments?
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Communication skills, Writing skills, Proper grammar, and spelling are really important for college Students and Graduate Students.
As a professional writer who teaches other writers, I’m always saddened when I see mistakes/errors in assignments, resumes, web sites, and on blogs. This is especially troublesome when a student turns to me to help him/her find a freelance writing assignment. Thus, I think that ANYTHING we can do to help others have proper spelling and grammer is vital.
With all these well thought out and genuine comments, I’m a little embarrassed that I went with humourous irony for mine.
I do think formal style and grammar is important. “Formal,” is perhaps too strong a word, but certainly following established conventions.
Consider James Joyce. He messed with the form a lot and many people praise him for it. I just wanted to slap him. Is it challenging writing? Absolutely! Is it good writing? I think that’s debatable.
Hi everyone, just a quick comment to let all those that are subscribe to comments by email know that students have been asked to share their thoughts on use of poor grammar and spelling.
The students have now started adding their thoughts to this post.
Thanks all students for taking the time to leave your thoughts and please feel free to ask others who have left comments any questions — if you would like. And similarly educators please feel free to ask students questions.
Hi my name is Georgia form Hawkesdale College.
How do I feel about somebody correcting my blog posts and comments?
I wouldn’t mind if somebody edited my blog and my comments. If there were any mistakes on my blog I probably wouldn’t have meant it and don’t know it’s there. I also wouldn’t mind because that person may be having trouble understanding what I’m saying and if he/she is then many other readers may be having trouble.
Is a formal structure or style for writing posts and comments necessary?
I believe it is important to use a formal structure when writing posts and comments. Some people find it hard to read slang words or lingo especially people who have to translate or aren’t used to using or seeing it. I believe it is really important for people to use proper grammar on their blogs and other people’s. It only takes a couple more seconds to write the word properly.
Hi, I am a year eight student in Australia, Victoria.
I think it would be good to have somebody correct your spelling and grammar on your comments or posts. Sometimes I don’t understand what some people say when they leave a comment on my blog because they use slang or mispell words. I wouldn’t care if somebody corrected my spelling on my blog and comments, because if they are left some people may not know what the word is. I might not even know that I made that mistake.
1. Is a formal structure or style for writing posts and comments necessary?
Yes I do think that this is true. Scrappy writing is for text messaging and it looks untidy on your blog and other people’s blogs.
2. How do you feel about your grammar and spelling being corrected in posts and comments?
I think its okay. If Ive spelt something wrong its good to known that someones going tom pick it up and tell me. Therefore I can change it, and know that its all fixed.
Hi i am Maddison Johnson i go to Hawkesdale Colledge Victoria. i am 13 years old and i am in year 8. As part of our work me and my class were asked to write a comment on your post and tell you what we as student think about this so here is my oppinion.
Well i think that with school things people should use correct grammar well try to anyway because not every one is very good spellers or anything like that. in saying that i dont mind if teachers or anyone like that correct the grammar in the posts because it would help if we make some mistakes.
Is formal grammar and spelling necessary?
Personaly I don’t think so. As long as it can be understood by others, it should be ok, I think.
I think if someone corrected the grammar and spelling that is posted, no one would really mind.