Amen, Peter--I will second your motion if no one else will--though Craig has responded in his usual thoughtful and appropriate way. 
 
I used to hear speakers at conferences ridicule the idea of error reduction as a meaningful goal by talking about students who wrote papers that were both "error-free and idea-free"--that is, grammatically and mechanically perfect but had absolutely nothing worthwhile to say--as if this kind of thing happened all the time. Instinctively I knew that it could not be so. However, in those early days I was too timid to ask, "How often does this situation actually happen?" 
 
I now know that, in actuality, it is a very rare thing. Yes, it does happen, but very rarely. Most students who have mastered grammar and mechanics have also mastered, at least somewhat, the ability to express their thoughts with some degree of skill. I would argue, though not without challenge, I'm sure, that there is a connection between the two. So don't worry--we will not be losing sight of the importance of error avoidance any time soon. But, as Craig said, thanks for the timely reminder.
 
Tim
 
Tim Hadley
Research Assistant, The Graduate School
Ph.D. candidate, Technical Communication and Rhetoric
Texas Tech University
Editor, ATEG Journal

________________________________

From: Assembly for the Teaching of English Grammar on behalf of Peter Adams
Sent: Sat 7/8/2006 6:43 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Scope and sequence, rationale


I understand that the ATEG position is that the teaching of grammar has wider goals than simply "the avoidance of error."  And over the years, thanks to this list and to presentations at conferences, I have come to embrace these wider goals.  However, the ATEG position sometimes sounds to me to suggest that any concern with the avoidance of error is misguided.  I would love to hear some ATEGers agree that reducing the frequency and seriousness of error in student writing is a worthwhile goal of grammar instruction, while recognizing that it should not be the only goal.



Peter Adams
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