|
by Stephen Brennan
|
|
There’s some ‘alliteration’ for
you! My great concern though, is the fact that there are too
many today who wouldn’t understand the title or know the meaning
of ‘alliteration’ (a repetition of words beginning with the same
letter – as in Peter Piper picked a peck......). You might ask,
"What has this to do with the Internet, Websites and Home Based
Business?". I'll get to that.
I’m a member of a number of forums and in each, at some point,
and often on a number of occasions, there is long discussion
regarding the standard of literacy among graduates these days
(or over the last twenty years or so).
It's perfectly obvious in every forum that many people don’t
have even the most basic skills when it comes to grammar and
spelling.
Perusing as many websites as I do on a daily basis, as do all
those who make their livings through home based business, I
sometimes find myself despairing for some of those who have
recently been through the so called 'educational' institutions
that pass as schools in western countries. I am Australian, I
have spoken with many in the U.S., Britain and Canada and it
would seem that the problem isn’t only relevant to any one
country or area.
Even when I worked in the ‘real’ world, I had occasion to hire
graduates who, of course, needed to fill out an application. I
still have a couple of extraordinary examples of ‘education
failing miserably’.
I posed earlier, "What does this have to do with the Internet,
Websites and Home Based Business?". When you consider that the
level of literacy required to put together a reasonable quality
website, fill it with passable content and promote it to search
engines and the Internet population in general, is beyond the
average High School graduate's writing (spelling and grammar)
capabilities, this is indeed a huge concern. Of course, you not
only have to be able to write but also have to be able to read
and understand others. |
|
Where will we
find ourselves in ten or fifteen years if something is not done
now to remedy this long-standing problem. Time and again
throughout the years I have heard people complain about the
quality of grammar and/or spelling of our graduates, let alone
the ability to create and write a good article, some reasonable
website content or a passable essay.
All forecasts indicate huge increases in the level of activity
on the Internet, from those who will use it to buy all manner of
items, possibly eventually alleviating the need for the giant
shopping complexes we now have, to the thousands (dare I say
millions) who will be joining the fortunate one’s who have been
able to turn their home office and PC into a means to earn the
weekly wage.
|
|
|
What then, of all these unfortunate young people in a world
where the written word, once again, becomes as important as
speech itself? How will they get on, what will be their lot in
this Internet driven world of the future? Dim to say the least,
I dare say.
In just the last five to ten years the way in which we
communicate has undergone a huge change from telephone, telex
(there's and oldie!) and letter to email. Anyone who goes to
work in an office today, who doesn’t know how to use email, will
be ‘incommunicado’. In fact, there are few who don’t exchange
information, greetings and news in their homes among friends and
relatives via email today. It’s the simple, popular, cheap and
secure way in which every type of communication takes place and
what are we doing? Still turning out thousands of youngsters
each year who have been short-changed by a system which has,
albeit unexpectedly, left them unarmed, with no cover in an
‘illiterate no-mans land’.
There are some who have managed to come through the ‘mill’ with
a good degree of ability to express themselves with the written
word, but I would hazard a guess that there are two or three who
haven’t for every one who has. The crying shame is that it’s not
their fault.
If we are going to give in to a world virtually (pun intended)
built around the Internet, isn’t it a good idea if those in it
are able to read and write?
** This 'Author's Resource' must be published intact with links
active when copying or publishing this article **
|
|
