Mr. McCleary,

I have been following this dialogue about grammar for a while and have some
thoughts to share with you.

There was a time in this country (1950's and before) when various
grade-school disciplines were taught rigorously and consistently.
Mathematics, science, social studies, and English were staples that required
students to study and work hard. Standards were high, and those that did not
make the grade were held back. When I went to school in the 50's, I learned
grammar thoroughly and well. I was expected to learn it, and we studied it
consistently throughout grades 1-6.  Also, my teachers knew grammar well,
and there was never confusion over what things meant. Am I now to believe
that kids back then were smarter than kids today?

Grammar is like playing a musical instrument: if you do not learn or
practice it, you will not be able to play. Of course grammar is hard.
Nothing of substance in the classroom is easily gotten. Those who engage in
a basic discipline like grammar, without complaint, benefit all along their
educational path.

Today, much of what passes as basic education has been stood on its head.
Students are "customers" and teachers are "suppliers." Everyone is urged to
be "practical" and only learn what is needed to get a job. The educational
system has been dumbed down to its lowest common denominators so that the
weakest minds can graduate from school. English  as a subject is very much
glossed over to the point where many students cannot write a simple,
sensible paper let alone sentence.

Also, Teachers coming out of colleges are incredibly weak in the disciplines
that they teach. Instead of strong fact-based knowledge about subjects, they
excel in child psychology and sociological "understanding." Should I have
been amazed when my daughter was marked wrong for identifying London as the
capital of England instead of Glasgow, which the teacher thought was the
correct location? I teach a required Technical Writing course to Juniors and
Seniors at the University of Houston, and the weakest students I have,
consistently, are the Education majors.

I am familiar with educational systems in Europe such as the Russian system.
Russian schools demand an incredible standard of learning and performance
from all students. When Russian kids take English as a second language,
grammar is taught right along with the reading and speaking portion. I would
challenge American teachers to take and pass their high school grammar test,
which is a required part of their curriculum. The students from Russia I
teach in my tech writing class speak, read, and write English better than
any of my American students. Maybe the Russian approach is very old
fashioned, but the results do not lie. I would ask you, in light of your
thesis "Grammar is difficult if not impossible to teach to the point of
practical application", how then a Russian student of English can do better
than an American counterpart? The secret is not in the grammar alone but
what it takes to learn it.

I cringe when I read educator cop-outs over subjects like grammar. They
should know better. The fact remains that all levels of the secondary
educational system have gotten weak and non-committed. The ultimate
responsibility for the failure of grammar studies lies with teachers and
their professors. On the student side, learning responsibility  remains with
parents who should demand excellent performance from their children. If
lousy students show up in my class, do I cater to their ignorance? Never.
Nothing replaces the value of high standards, hard schoolwork, and
perseverance.

There should be no excuses for poor teachers and lazy performance by
students. Engaging in research-based cop-outs allow Americans to lean back
and do nothing. The real world needs the strong standards of subjects like
grammar back in the classroom, and it needs it now more than ever.

Pete Lunde
BMC Software Inc.
University of Houston

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