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Tuesday, July 27, 2010

The language of education - a pedant writes

I cannot pretend that everything I write is grammatically correct or properly spelt but I take comfort in the fact that I am not the only one.

Why do all the best typos happen in the reporting of education stories? This morning's Western Mail for example tells us that the director general of education in Wales has announced he is to step down from the role in September. He is the third to go in the last five years.

At least one teaching union wants stability in the post and suggests that we now need a director in charge who is going to stay and ensure that work is followed through. The paper quotes the union head as saying:

“The Assembly should be weary before they look for yet another outsider. We’ve got plenty of homegrown talent in Wales and perhaps they should be looking closer to home.”

Perhaps the Government should be tired of looking for outsiders or maybe just wary instead.

Meanwhile over at the South Wales Evening Post there is a more serious phenomenon, the destruction of plain English by educational professionals:

A Swansea Council spokesman said: "Careful consideration has been given to the needs of pupils receiving education through both the medium of English and the medium of Welsh.

"This has included an extensive stakeholder engagement as part of the Authority's Quality in Education (QEd) 2020 programme, and the authority is continuing to deliver the priority options identified through this process, as resources allow."


So in English: the council has spoken to everyone who has an interest in this subject, they have decided what is most important and will be changing things when they have the money.

Glad that is clear then.
Comments:
"Meanwhile over at the South Wales Evening Post there is a more serious phenomena, the destruction of plain English by educational professionals:"
Er... phenomenon actually...
 
Yeh! Thought it might be somehow :(
 
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