No one likes the Grammar Police

It is interesting that Williams chooses to kick off the chapter by saying that the study of grammar does not lead to improved writing. OK, so now that we’ve established that, why do we still seem to dedicate so much time and effort to this subject in our schools? In fact, last semester I had to take a 100-level English class that dealt entirely with grammar conventions. We even had to diagram sentences, which was really lame and incredibly boring. I can think of a lot of other things that I’d rather do than teach grammar, but I guess that the use of standardized test in the schools requires the districts to ensure that grammar is included in the curriculum. This is too bad for the students, because it really isn’t much fun for them, even if you do try to come up with creative ways to teach the stuff.

I found it fascinating to learn that internalized grammar begins developing at birth. I guess that means that babies start picking up on language (or at least communication in some form) as soon as they leave the womb – or maybe even before then. I will have to keep this in mind, because if I ever have kids of my own the last thing I’d want them to hear is some of the dirty language that comes out of my mouth, especially when I am watching football or having some beers with friends. I used to think that kids – especially when they were only babies – were often too small to pick up on things that adults said, but it seems like that isn’t the case at all. Just something to think about down the road….

One more thing…I noticed that Williams says that all people make numerous mistakes with language, and that sometimes the more educated a person is, the more likely that he/she is to make a mistake. It’s funny that I should come across this now. The other day I was in one of my education classes when another student remarked that he/she is in the habit of correcting language mistakes that his/her friends make when they communicate. I thought this seemed a bit odd, so I mentioned this in class, and then this person declared that she would continue this practice with her students. I guess this is something that is appropriate in the classroom (although I am not entirely sure about that, either), but I certainly wouldn’t advise people to get out on the streets in a grassroots effort to fix one another’s language blunders. Although you might be trying to help someone, this type of thing can easily come across as elitist, pompous, rude, or whatever adjective you find appropriate to describe the scenario. Just thought I’d point this out, but only because Williams points out that everyone – even I – makes mistakes with language. So the moral of this story is: don’t go out and start pointing fingers at others until you’ve taken a look at yourself. After all, no one (that I know) likes the Grammar Police.