Craig,

Your example about the ban on contractions was telling, but it also reminded me of an experience I had a couple of years ago. Early in the semester in a freshman comp course, a student reported that she had been told never to use the pronoun "you" in college writing. Perhaps with an edge of indignation in my voice, I asked, "Who told you that?" She replied, "You did last semester in developmental writing."

Now, I would never tell anyone they can't use the pronoun "you," but clearly this student thought I had. . . . Sometimes what students is hear is different from what we think we said.

Peter Adams
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