THE EDITOR, Sir:
IN AN article in your commentary section entitled 'Big Gaps in Education', Dr. Stephen Vasciannie bemoans the poor grammatical and stylistic quality of a cover letter sent to a potential employer by a self-professed student of a tertiary institution.
In the article, Dr. Vasciannie insinuates that it is quite possible that Jamaica's tertiary institutions are not giving sufficient credence to the use of proper English in written communication.
I am a graduate advisor and academic development instructor at a small liberal arts college in New Jersey.
ROOT OF PROBLEM
A few months ago I spent several hours reviewing the basics of English grammar with a graduating senior who had received a grade of B on an essay and had enquired from me how to improve the essay for a resubmission.
The paper, of over 100 sentences, had maybe five sentences that were grammatically correct and syntactically acceptable to begin with.
The fact that this professor could consider giving a B to a paper with as many errors as that one had is the root of the problem.
It seems as though, unless one is majoring in English, one is never encouraged or forced to write grammatically correct any more.
Unfortunately, this seems to be the case at many noted institutions here in America. As part of my job, I also mentor and advise students interested in attending law school.
I recently attended the 34th annual Northeastern Association of Pre-Law Advisors conference, at which one of the big topics was the writing ability of students applying to law schools.
FROM FRYING PAN INTO FIRE
The pre-law advisors and law schools admissions staff from schools such as Columbia, Princeton, Duke, Rutgers, and others all complained that students today have no significant knowledge of the fundamental rules of English grammar, diction, mechanics and usage.
I say all this to say, Jamaican parents sending their children to college in America as a way to ensure that their children learn to write properly in English, may find that they are jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire.
I am, etc.,
SHELDON CHANNER
sheldon_Channer@yahoo.com
New Jersey, U.S.A.
Via Go-Jamaica
