Appalling grammar influx

[Schnicklefritz]

NC because I am almost certain that I'm going to receive a bashing.

Has anyone else noticed the influx of threads started by posters with absolutely awful grammar? I don't mean mixing up "your/you're" or "there/their/they're". I mean entire paragraphs without full stops, capitalization, "we wasn't/I weren't", "cuz" instead of "because".

Add in standard abbreviations like "wwyd" and "DH/DC", and it makes the posts incredibly difficult to follow and in some instances, effectively unreadable.

It's only the past two weeks or so that I've noticed the increase in these posts. Is it just me?

I realise that English is not the first language of many mumsnetters, and make allowances for that.

It does make itbit harder to read for some of us.
That said I have appalling number of typos in my posts usually so not helpful as well...

It’s even harder to understand when the OP has changed details to preserve anonymity (which is fair enough) but then can’t keep up with the changes. 😂

You end up with a thread full of “but you said your daughter was 6, why did you have a pushchair with you” etc.

I never correct posters grammar or spelling because you just don’t know the reasons why. It could be dyslexia, visual difficulties, unsupportive parents while growing up, all manner of things. Of course if the post is completely incomprehensible then a polite suggestion to clarify is ok. I’ve learnt to not let it bother me. I do correct my own (grown up) kids spelling and grammar when they text me though 🙂

Totally agree.

I think your completely UR and obviously a grammer snob some people isn't interested in where a full stop goes they just want to talk about interesting currant topics like Phil Scofield I don't understand what you're problem is with that it's always complete possible to read the thread and some people doesnt have access to education outside of London.

Dialect is spoken though- not written down. "We was" is incorrect when written down. I suppose it depends on how formal you expect a post to be!

I just leave those ones too!

In fairness, those tend to be trolls, so I ignore them as well.

Yanbu, but then again I think the grammar of most tv presenters these days is pretty poor generally.

I don't really mind as long as I can understand. Should of instead of have grates a bit. I do remember one thread that was quite difficult to follow, and everyone was being nice because it was obvious that English wasn't the OPs first language, only it was. That was toe curlingly embarrassing.

@NowZeusHasLainWithLeda

Of course not. And obviously I should have proof-read what I wrote.

But if people constantly hear the same mistake, and see it written down, some of them will not unnaturally assume it is correct.

Most of my family are from East Anglia and I've never heard them say we wasn't/I weren't!

I absolutely agree!

I wouldn’t call that a dialect, that to me just seems like bad grammar.

I can always work out what it is people are trying to say so it doesn't really bother me.

Yes! Certainly a lot of my badly spoken neighbours in Herts DO use these phrases.

I wonder if that’s why Alesha Dixon says ‘you wasn’t’ (used to make my teeth grind when she was a judge on Strictly), seems she comes from Herts.

YABU
It's a internet forum not a job application.
People are writing informally like they would talk to a friend (well some are).
People are writing on phones and fighting the autocorrect/predictive text or just CBA to go back and edit.
A shocker: people across the UK /abroad have different dialects and put things differently.
Not everyone has English as their first language or a 5 star education and some are dyslexic.

None of those things mean someone can't join in a discussion on MN.

If you haven't figured out that texting, whatsapp and online chat is much more like talking and less like writing, well, welcome to the 21st century.

The reason is that most teachers barely know grammar because education (in many countries) has been dumbed down for generations. But your original post requires some attention to punctuation and you need to stick to one style (either US or UK). You are welcome!

"We wasn't/I weren't/You was" and so forth are also quirks of the Derbyshire/South Yorkshire dialect. My DH has tasked me with correcting him each and every time he makes these errors (he wants to sound more "professional"), but they are so ingrained that he just can't seem to stop. Even teachers use these phrases here, so they won't be going away

@TheyWentToSeaInASieve I'm from Canada, which uses a mix of UK and US English.

Totally agree OP. But successive governments will be quick to tell you how grades (ergo standards, they want you to believe) have improved... Dumbed down Britain is definitely a thing.

Really? I tend to give people the benefit of the doubt 😅 I would hate to be outed on MN!

Don’t read it then? If I can’t follow what’s being said due to bad grammar or language, I just stop reading, rather than trying to decipher it, or wasting time offering advice to someone whose probably too thick to appreciate it.

I close posts that don’t use full stops. Too hard to read. Just looks like rambling to me, which is a shame I know because it could be a very valid post.