To think basic literacy skills on this board are AWFUL

[Pinkandwhiteblossoms]

I know it's bad form to point it out in the midst of someone else's distress, but seriously, am I the only one who has noticed it?

"your defiantly wrong"
"have you considered councilling"
"their going to take over"
"alot of people don't bother"

I'm not expecting Samuel Pepys but seriously, I find it difficult to respond as the wider point is lost amidst the terrible writing!

It doesn't really bother me, on a personal level. Rarely, very rarely I see a post so poorly written that it puts me off responding. That is usually when it's just a block of text, no paragraphs.

At a population level I do think that basic literacy skills are being eroded, probably from over reliance on autocorrect etc. However that isn't user5000000000's fault and the post about her abusive relationship, by means of example, is not the place to bring it up.

Ironic Iona

You say that thebaker My daughter who is 10 and has ASD, learning difficulties and developmental delays and is below average academically, memorises the globe, and can tell you what flag looks like for each country, she is really good. She can see patterns in things which most people cannot. She is also talented at trampolining, gaining her grade 1 and 2 after only 2 lessons, and working on grade 3. So there you go.

The new trend for saying/typing should of instead of should have is annoying me the most along with somethink

Typing "should of" is fairly glaring but around here if you hear "should of" it is more likely to be the contraction "should've"

thebakerwithboobs I haven't mentioned spelling once in this post?

Not in this entire thread have I mentioned anything like that

Aeroflot that's great, and is exactly my point-which perhaps I didn't make clear. Your daughter struggles academically but has a whole fist of other amazing talents that others don't have. The OP is judging others based purely on one, single academic skill which simply writes off all of the other talents that person may have. Being academically able is great, but not all talents are academic ones and it's ridiculous to judge others based purely on how well they can write.

The examples given in the original post are spelling errors, no??

Does anyone else feel a sense of smug satisfaction when they witness an exchange like this on e.g. Facebook?

Jill: Would anyone like to come to the cinema tonight with Jack and me?

Jane: Jack and I.

Jill: What?

Jane: It should be Jack and I, not Jack and me.

Jill: Oh thanks hun, I'll fix it!

Jane: No problem, sorry hun but you know me, I'm such a grammar Nazi!

If that's an exchange you've actually seen then Jane is wrong 😂

You are probably being slightly U but I'm with you. It really grates when I read really basic errors but I blame the education system from back then. My children are bringing home grammar and spelling sheets that our generation and the ones slightly after didn't have.

Quite. And yes it is indeed an exchange I've seen, more than once in fact!

Please DON'T pop over to Pedants' Corner if you want to whinge about literacy. That's not what we do over there ... The regulars just like to talk about nuances of language, and how there are very few hard and fast rules.

Vintage and Hobnob - Sorry - my post was meant to be ironic. I love Pedants' Corner. (It's all about context. There are very few correct answers, etc.)

I know the baker, her spelling is bad, her maths is not up to much, but she's not a write off, and the thought of someone judging her writing and spelling, like op, makes me sad. Thank God for autocorrect, it's easier now for people with SN to spell and write, than before. Thank goodness for calculators as my daughter will have to rely on one due to difficulties with mental arithmetic

It's an Internet forum. People write on their iPhones while pooing or when they are waiting in the car to collect the kids or when they can't sleep. I also do not proof read as honestly, who cares?

Is there any evidence that national literacy levels are on the decline? Or is it the case that we communicate so frequently with the written word nowadays that we are more frequently exposed to people's ability?

OP - I saw this and I thought of you.....

Alisvolatpropiis: At a population level I do think that basic literacy skills are being eroded

boolifooli: Is there any evidence that national literacy levels are on the decline? Or is it the case that we communicate so frequently with the written word nowadays that we are more frequently exposed to people's ability?

Longitudinal evidence suggests that in the UK, the population is the most literate it has ever been - see this link. The advent of the internet also means that children are likely reading and writing a lot more than they ever have historically. Quite what level of literacy each person achieves is another question, but we've certainly moved on from the monarchs of England signing their name with a cross.

Oh do come back op.

OP is miles away, in a darkened room, rocking, muttering about spelling and literacy standards and how it's all going to the dogs.

The new trend for saying/typing should of instead of should have

There is nothing new about people saying 'should of' - it was commonplace where I grew up in the 1960s, and distinctly pronounced that way not as the contracted 'should've' (which is obviously how it originated).

crapucinno you do make me laugh!
I'm still waiting for op to answer my question about 100 posts ago. Oh well

What was it, sorry? Been a bit tied up tonight, had a birthday :)

I have a close friend who has poor writing skills. She is the most genuine, dependable and funniest person I know.
If you can't work out what someone is saying due to their poor spelling and/or grammar then you can't be as clever as you seem to like to think.

Do you want this to be a forum where only people with a certain level of literacy can join in? Was my question.
Have to admit I haven't had my chance yet of starting a shit storm on mumsnet then leaving for a birthday party. Damn it, I'm sure my time will come. .