to think English teachers should be able to spell?

[teenyweenytadpole]

DD is yr 7 so just started new school, just as background she is excellent at English, put forward for level 6 SATs (got a high 5 in the end which she was delighted with). Anyway I was looking through her school books and noticed her English teacher had commented "I liked how each sentence had some good descripsion" and then added "check to see theres no missing words". So poor spelling, poor grammar and poor punctuation! I am not very impressed but feel if I comment to the school it seems kind of petty. I just think it's a shame, English is DD's best subject and I would hope that she would be taught by teachers with a more impressive command of the language than this.

[Woozley]

I could allow for something which is clearly a typo or oversight, but the OP's example demonstrates a worrying lack of basic knowledge, I would say. I wouldn't expect a teacher of any subject to make such errors.

[DoverBeach]

Peer marking? If not, that's terrible.

[LesleyPumpshaft]

To be fair OP's punctuation is irrelevant. She's only posting on a forum, not teaching children the Queen's English.

The teacher could have made more of an effort I s'pose.

[BrianAndHisBalls]

At our 'meet the teacher' night for yr 3 dd last week the teacher had written:

ROUTEINE

on the whiteboard.

Kill me now.

[Bonsoir]

ROFL at ROUTEINE.

Did anyone say anything?

[TheGOLDCunnyFunt]

at routeine! I would've had to point it out.

[VeritableSmorgasbord]

I cannot imagine how people put themselves forward to BE English teachers if they haven't got a grasp of spelling and punctuation.

I can't do gymnastics, I'm not going to become a bloody acrobat...

[Thewidewideworld]

I'd really like the OP to come back and let us know if she has checked with her DD whether it was actually the teacher who wrote that comment.

[sassytheFIRST]

Ditto, widewideworld. I keep checking the thread to see!

[BrianAndHisBalls]

sadly no one said anything. There were many raised eyebrows but I imagine it was felt too cruel to mention in public

[Bonsoir]

[WindyandWet]

This just reminds me of the great fun I had when I was 12 when I asked my English teacher what was wrong with the word "playwright" as in "the playwright William Shakespeare".

She asked me how to spell "write" so I did, and she attempted to walk off. But I asked her how to spell "wheelwright" whilst getting out my dictionary and opening it at the appropriate page! Tee hee. (She took it in good humour).

I also regularly enjoyed correcting my biology teachers Latin! They must all have hated me!!!

[cardibach]

Peer marking is not about speling, whoever was criticising use of the technique. It is about pupils grasping what makes a good newspaper article, story, speech or whatever and commenting on that. It helps them to improve their own work. Spellings will still be corrected by a teacher.

[Brycie]

Cardibach, I doubt your last sentence. And who are peers to judge "what makes a good newspaper article". Half the time the teachers don't know.

[teenyweenytadpole]

OMG I am so embarrassed - sorry everyone but in turns out the comments were made by a classmate, they had been doing some form of peer assessment. I stand corrected and am very sorry!!

[Brycie]

It's still rubbish. The teacher should be checking it.

[Thewidewideworld]

TeenyWeeny - thanks for coming back and clearing that up! I am so pleased to be right about what the likely explanation was!

Brycie - I think you are failing to understand the point of peer assessment. It is an important skill that we need to teach so that by the time they reach KS4 age children are able to take an objective view of the their own work and that of others and understand how to apply success criteria and recognise what level they are at and what they need to do to improve. Without that skill they are unable to analyse their work. Very few Y7s can do it well, it is a difficult thing to master, but they need to practise it.

[WilfSell]

We had a good old guffaw at DS3's leaflet, which arrived exactly as typed below:


Your literacy target for this term is:

to use more capital letters and full stops at the end of your sentences

[ravenAK]

Oh good, I thought it might be peer assessment.

Nice thoughtful comments from fellow year 7 pupil, although I'd get them to be slightly more precise if top set - what was good about the description? What techniques were used? - & maybe highlight examples in their peer's work.

Brycie, I think it's fair, & kindest, to say that you don't fully understand what peer assessment is.

[Spermysextowel]

What is peer assessment? I remember my sister marking other pupils' books, but that was back in the 70s & my parents just thought it was the teachers being rather lazy.

[Brycie]

ravenak I do, I don't think much of it though. Each sentence might not have had good descripsion and there may have been no missing words. But where's the teacher to point that out?

[Thewidewideworld]

Brycie - you don't. Quite clearly.

[Brycie]

Do share.

[Thewidewideworld]

I provided an explanation several posts down. Perhaps you'd like to read it again.

[Brycie]

"Help them in learning to evaluate their own learning and in interpreting assessment criteria" - they should not need to mark each others work to do this
"increasing feedback to students" - from their peers? they don't want that - they want and need assessment from someone, a teacher, who knows their stuff
"reducing marking loads for staff" - uh huh
"giving students a sense of ownership of the assessment process" - at the cost of teacher assessment
"encouraging students to be more involved and take more responsibility for their learning" - at the cost of teacher assessment

"However, disadvantages may be encountered when students lack the ability to evaluate each other, do not take it seriously, or fear discrimination." you can say that again

Worthwhile in Y13 and 13? maybe. Worthwhile in class debate? definitely. Worth the cost in teacher assessment otherwise? Not in my opinion. I'll have to beg to differ.