Teacher, you get an F

WARNING: This blog contains strong opinions that may offend. Apologies if I inadvertently insult anyone but that was never my intention.

I am very pedantic when it comes to spelling, punctuation and grammar. What you don't know, dear reader, is that whenever I compose these tirades that I like to call blogs I always use the spell-check function on Microsoft Word just to make sure I spell certain words or even sentences correctly.
This is not to say that my spelling, punctuation and grammar is always perfect - I do make mistakes once in a while - but I always try to ensure that I am spot on.
But you will never, I repeat NEVER catch me using words incorrectly. No offence to anyone but I find it astonishing that some people cannot tell the difference between some words that sound alike but have different meanings. Take the words 'allowed' and 'aloud' as an example. They are not the same word, people. Same with the words 'there', 'they're' and 'their'. I shake my head at the number of times I catch someone using those three words in the wrong context - and that's just newspaper and internet reporters.
Unless you're sending out an SMS on your phone or an informal message to your friends or family on some social networking website of your choice you really have no excuse to be mixing those words up on a frequent basis.

Now, whenever I send SMS messages I do abbreviate some words and expressions (ie: later written as 'l8er', because written as 'coz', seriously as 'srsly') just to save time and space. But that said, I will never allow any SMS-style spelling get in the way of my real spelling ability. Could you just imagine how my blogs would look if that were the case? There would be a decided lack of vowels and numbers slotted in the wrong areas.

A story I read today in the paper made me cringe. If you've read some of my past blogs, I've ranted that some kids these days are ill-mannered and disrespectful, had irresponsible parents and that schools have gone soft and stupid on them.
Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse I read today that some school teachers have been caught using SMS-style spelling and grammatical errors when filling out school reports, report cards and lesson plans. Some parents also complained that their childrens' teachers were lacklustre and languid in their approach to their profession, taught incorrect information and provided children with 'word lists' to study that were littered with spelling errors.
One teacher griped claimed that many graduate teachers who lacked a basic understanding of grammar, spelling and punctuation only have themselves to blame due to their lackadaisical approach to their own schooling. She added that she was concerned for the future of her childrens' learning as long as teachers like these existed.
The situation is so dire that the federal government plans to give current teachers specialist training in which they will be mentored by more experienced teachers.

I have always said that I am glad I was a schoolkid years ago rather than now. It was bad enough being bullied back then and having to put up with a few idiot teachers whose mind-numbing and incoherent methods prevented me from realising my full schoolwork potential. But at least I still finished in one piece with my sanity mostly intact and with decent, if not outstanding grades.
Today, bullying has escalated to include cyber-bullying and assaults with deadly weapons, more kids are skipping class, schools are becoming more lax and ridiculous with their rules and now some teachers are getting dumber. Seriously, SMS-style spelling and grammatical errors? School reports, lesson plans and report cards filled with errors? A lax approach to their profession? Wow, just wow. Are you telling me that there are people out there educating the youth of our nation who can't even form simple sentences without screwing up!? The thought of it makes me sick.

Seriously, if I had a kid and he/she brought home a bad report card that was full of spelling and grammatical errors from their teacher I would be livid. Not just from the kid's lack of effort in class but from his/her teacher's lack of effort in their profession. I would immediately report the teacher and push for them to be sacked and sent back to school. Call me overdramatic but that's just how I feel. I would be absolutely disgusted if I knew my children were being taught by some incompetent imbecile who spells simple words with numbers inserted to substitute at least two letters in that word.

To you teachers out there who make these mistakes, do you review what you've written before they get sent out to students and their parents? Did excessive use of your electronic devices scramble your brain cells to the point that you do not remember the original spelling of certain words or are you so dumb that you cannot seem to differentiate between school reports and text messages sent to friends? Your job is to teach these kids, people! If you have lost your ability to spell simple words correctly and COMPLETELY and to formulate sentences without messing up then perhaps it's time to look for a new line of work. How do you expect to be taken seriously when angry parents are howling for your dismissal?

Let's suppose your child was misbehaving in class and you got a letter from their teacher expressing their concern. How would you react if the letter looked like this?

Dear *insert name here*

*Insert child's name here* wuz l8 4 class 2day an wuz actin lyk a tool so I snt him hom erly. Sry 4 da trouble.  

This is a serious problem, people. If the teachers in our schools can't even do their jobs to the best of their ability then the children of today and maybe even the future are in serious jeopardy. Luckily, the government have seen this problem and are taking steps to fix it, which I am all for. You can fix the school and put up new rules, regulations and systems to raise students' performances but what's the point if their teachers can't do their part?
Let's keep the SMS-style spelling and real spelling separate. And let's learn how to use words and formulate sentences the correct way. Teachers back when I was a kid were able to, there's no reason why some of you teachers today shouldn't be able to do the same.

Beware of what you share

An internet hacking group called Anonymous recently named and shamed a man who posted topless pictures of a 15-year old girl online and bullied her into committing suicide.
The girl, Amanda Todd, hanged herself on October 10. Just weeks prior to her death she had posted a video on youtube in which she described the pain she has had to go through thanks to relentless cyber bullying.

It all started when she met a stranger online who asked her to show him her breasts on a webcam. Inexplicably, she went through with the request, only to learn that the stranger had uploaded the image on a Facebook page in which her friends were added. She was bullied mercilessly by her peers, to the point that she was forced to move to a new city and change schools.

But more trouble was to come.

She then began a relationship with an older man, unaware that he had a girlfriend. The man's jealous girlfriend tracked her down and beat her up, plunging her into such a state that she went home and drank bleach in an attempt to commit suicide.
She was rushed to hospital to flush out the bleach but she continued in her attempt to end her life, despite counselling and antidepressants. On October 10, she was found hanged.

A sad story indeed. But upon reading it, I couldn't help but shake my head in disbelief. While I am glad that the scumbag who started all this was caught and while I hope that all the bullies who brought so much misery into Amanda's short, tragic life will get what they deserve, if Amanda was around today and I had the chance to have a talk with her, the first question I would ask is 'WHAT ON EARTH WERE YOU THINKING!!!???' Seriously, did she expect anything good to come out of flashing her naughty bits to a complete stranger on the internet? It doesn't take a genius to know that such acts can lead to a world of pain and damaged reputations. Perhaps teenage exuberance and naivete' may have played a part but really, and no offense intended, Amanda should have known better.

It makes me sad whenever I read news stories of people (most of whom are young girls) being bullied and tormented all because of a mistake they made on the internet, which are mostly of the over-sharing type. No one deserves to be treated that way, but some victims really have no one to blame but themselves. Yes, cyber bullying can be the result of other people's doing (eg. people taking a lot of flak thanks to false rumours being spread about them online) but in other cases, they are the result of the victim's carelessness. It goes without saying that you should be careful of what you share online, especially to people you have never met before. They are not always what - or who - they appear to be.

Anonymous identified a 32-year old man from British Columbia, Canada as the offender, and as it turns out his username has appeared in other websites in which he blackmails and preys on young girls. Unfortunately, attempts to speak to him have been futile, especially since the address that Anonymous gave to the police was the wrong one. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police, however, states that they are aware of the information posted online.

This tragic story should serve as a cautionary tale for internet users everywhere, particularly those who are young and impressionable. Be very careful about what you share and beware of creeps online. Do not post anything on there that you wouldn't want your parents to see.
As for Amanda Todd, may you Rest In Peace, Kiddo. Your suffering is over now. Condolences go out to your friends and family.