Too many Canadians lack literacy skills, says study

I am shocked

I knew it had to be high but not that high

I do read for some seniors at a seniors home and I do know most of them don’t have education past grade 3-4. In their school days they tell me, that was quite an acheivment to get that high. Many older men in their 80’s 90’s lied about their age to go to war. Most got away with it even tho they were only 14. One man told me he was 13 and went to war. His size and height fooled them. Meer babes

I also teach 3 to read but suspect there are a dozen more judging how they strectch their necks when they see and hear me

My typing and spelling for myself could use improvement. But all I need to do is slow down the fingers and use spell check more.

Good article

Carolyn

-- NS Zone 5B 200 KM East of Halifax cheers Bunting------Having a place to go – is a home. Having someone to love – is a family.

I am seeing more and more disdain for a “complete” formal education that involves the three basics.
In the past, many of our seniors had to make hard social and economic choices but today we seem to be looking for an easy way to circumvent developing a strong and useful mind.

I have heard teachers say that spelling is unimportant as long as they can express themselves.
I still think it would be preferable if they could understand what they are reading before formulatiing an opinion.
That should go double for teachers that think like that.

Bob

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth

This is a frightening statistic for any country

I must admit when I was in school (cough cough) years ago, I remember being “taught spell it as you pronounce it” the only problem with that and especially with so many different dialects in the UK that people do not always pronounce the words correctly – so how can you spell it correctly?

My written English language only improved after I graduated from university, when I went into industry and and started to write very long technical documents (this was before computers and spell checkers were even thought about), with the advent of PCs and word processors, I have learned and still keep learning today the correct spelling of words and new words thanks to the Internet and thesaurus on my PC.

As Carolyn correctly stated, slow down on the key board (have you ever noticed when you hit the correct keys, they put different symbols on the screen!!!!!). Sites like this one are a great way for people top practise there writing skills and learn, the only problem is I have forgotten how to use a pen.

-- Tony - Finland www.poydatjatuolit.fi

Canada is not alone. Many of us here in the States have been lamenting the “Dumbing Down of America for decades now. The gov’t’s “No Child Left Behind” program sounded great. Unfortunately they didn’t mean giving each child the extra help needed, they just mean “pass ‘em anyway”.

-- the day you quit learning is the day you quit living.

Dini that has been happening in our schools too.If a student fails more than once they put them through anyway so as not to let them look dumb and be teased by other students.I can see doing this for mentally challenged students but now students who are just too lazy to learn are on the rise and adding to our total of uneducated adults.

-- Bon,Hastings,Ont.....zone 5a....Always room for one more

Somehow the basic idea of “critical thinking” has escaped the learning process.
By that I mean that in the past, both parents and educators could see the advantages of giving our youth the proper tools to advance themselves.
Language skills were held in high respect.
Today with constant media disruptions and the lax idea that minimal effort is good enough for a pass we are rapidly reaching a point where communcation is becoming difficult and in some cases dangerous.
Will our society evolve into a giant pool of marginalised worker ants dominated by a small handful of highly trained executives?

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth

In Ontario, at least in Simcoe county which is where I live, the educational system is getting rid of the “pencil” “testing” “homework” “written assignments”...................

How does a bunch of government appointed cronnies, with heads firmly planted in the pig trough, decide this?

Its alarming !!!!!

I’m so tired of the next generations constant need of positive encouragement, their sense of entitlement. My bride is of that generation and her children constantly think the world owes them something.

Whats next?

-- Central northish Ontario

Bureaucracy needs a proletariat dumber than them or they cannot control us.
I would say they are definitely working their magic.

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth

cant read, cant write, cant think, cant do much and they never do anything wrong because they never do anything.

I’m sooooooo tired of it Bob, and yet I am constantly surrounded by excuses.

I now have to lock up just about everything as some folks think that whats mine….......is actually theirs and far too often I am paying out $$$$ to fix what no one broke?

My bride is a teacher…..............she works from 8 am to 2:30 pm, a whopping 6 1/2 hours to which she gets a 1 hour lunch and one whole period to do her marking and prep work, 10 to 18 days of paid holidays at Christmas, 9 to 10 weeks paid holidays every summer, a weeks paid holidays at March break and every statutory holiday in between, an “indexed pension”, months of sick leave if needed and a pretty fat paycheque….........at the end of the day she “whines” about kids who do little if anything and yet sticks up for own children who come home, watch TV, eat, watch more TV…...........?

I thinks its a social desease and its spreading faster then a cougar on a crippled chicken.

When the premier of Ontario was voted into office, there were less then 5,000 civil servants making over 100,000 a year…..........5 years later there is over 40,000 civil servants making in excess of 100,000 a year, the auto sector is sputtering with unemployement rates of over 25% in some citiies…........and every cicil servant is itching to go on strike…............?

Thats it…............I’m going back to work on my greenhouse

-- Central northish Ontario

How about all the colleges that are becoming Universities….................what ever happened to “higher education”.................it seems that it willnever end being watered down unto those on the other side of the big ponds have us on our knees begging for a telemarketing job

-- Central northish Ontario

Apparently, you can send money to an offshore “college/University” and receive not only “study material” but also a degree or certificate without every having passed more than a multiple choice test similar to the ones used to gather candidates for the Military. (i.e. do you have a pulse?)
The killer is that these quasi-bogus “degrees” are now being accepted here as equivalents to locally obtained certification.
It must really sting to have to work alongside one of these under skilled people drawing the same paycheck as you.

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth

I didn’t read all of the above but add to this that our youth speak “techno”, with the short forms etc. Full sentences are obsolete for them. . full words are obsolete.

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a) http://www.execulink.com/~yohan

Technical works are full of complex prose because the subject matter is complex and calls for it. Legal prose is complex because it has to define terms as precisely as possible without leaving any possible ambiguity. Shakespeare and the King James Bible have complex prose because that’s how people talked 400 years ago, and people of the time considered it perfectly plain English. Stuff like the pretentious immature e-mail or poorly used techno jargon is complex because the writer apparently wants to impress people. If you’re an English teacher who has let stuff like this pass, shame on you.

Ditch the pretentious language. People who write like this come across as posers.

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth

Argh. Tell me about it. Heard on the train the other day after work: “I just love literature, but I just can’t stand that Shakespeare guy”. It makes me want to sit them down and teach them! Or ring their necks!

Let’s just say that I might be considered to be one of those highly trained executives you mentioned and I am continually amazed by the number of colleagues who struggle to create a coherent sentence. I don’t consider myself highly trained – I just stuck in school way beyond my welcome. I delayed my ability to gain income at an earlier age however I am certainly reaping the benefits as I can perform most tasks in half the time than a lot of other folks in the same position. I am not even working in the field in which I invested all my time. I don’t mean to brag, but staying in school and getting an education just for education sake gives you wealth far beyond a top dollar paycheck.

I was also lucky because I had parents who believed in that principle as well.

-- Zone 4a or 4b... depending on where you are standing!

mtkate, you hit it right on the head.
Every hour you stay in school and “learn” makes your future that much easier and your rewards that much larger.
The more you learn the easier it becomes to learn.
If only we could show this to our youth.

Bob

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth

isnt that what the TV is for?

-- Central northish Ontario

Yep, that and the internet.

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth

I guess nearly half of Canadiens won’t be able to read the report.

I choose to limit my response to this thread as this is a sore spot for me (and I don’t have any children that I know of.)

I do believe that, without technology, this up and coming generation would die off very quickly. I personally would like to live long enough to say “I told you so!” and take potshots at those who came begging for help.

-- arborial reconfiguration specialist......Zone out....(USA 5)

Ahem!
We would prefer to be know as and called Canadians rather than Canadiens if it’s alright with you.

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth

LMAO

-- Central northish Ontario

And you probably spell color with a “u”. And since I’m emperor of my universe, I prefer to refer to you as canadiens. Better get used to it for when global warming drives all us yanks north.

-- arborial reconfiguration specialist......Zone out....(USA 5)

Catspaw, we don’t spell Colour with a “u”.

We simply know how to spell colour.

You should really try to get a grip on that “Emperor of the universe crap”.

What a joke!

As for comming North ,... any time Homer.

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth

Oh Bob, maybe Catspaw is a hockey fan and follows the Montreal Canadiens closely. Do you know how confusing it is to have a local basketball team spelled Celtics, but pronounced Seltics? Let’s ban all sports teams with misleading names. : ) No better yet, let’s get our governments involved to pass a law forbidding the use…. <vbg>

-- Robin, Massachusetts - "Live simply so others can simply live." M. Gandhi

“Oh Bob, maybe Catspaw is a hockey fan”
Not likely, probably just illiterate.
Actually Robin, I think Catspaw is just an agitator .
He hangs around here and never posts a bloody thing that’s even remotely interesting as far as gardens are concerned then shoots out darts trying to start a quarrel.
More to be pitied than praised.

Bob

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth

Interesting… I have enjoyed many of Catspaws postings. If you click on the links uner his/her avatar you will see many interesting garden topics. And BTW, before anyone lashes insults it would be nice to check your history ;)

Canadien: before 1763 AD there was no such thing as a “Canadian.” Instead, the Canadiens (notice the conspicuous ‘e’) were the inhabitants of New France (a region also called Canada which was a word derived from the Iroquoian word Kanata). To make a long story short, a Canadien was a French speaking person born in Quebec up until 1763 when the English conquered New France. Thereafter, English settlers moved in and their children became Canadians. However, Canadiens still exist. They are French types who live in Quebec; whereas Canadian is a term used to refer to everyone else.
http://www.vcanada2.com/

-- Xploreorganics, 5b Canada, LFD 06-20

My, you are in fine form tonight Judy!
Would that not also be Iroquoein to follow your barnyard logic?

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth

Now now Bob, Insulting more than one person here? Seems to me you are the one that rarely “posts a bloody thing that’s even remotely interesting as far as gardens are concerned”, except mind you for the same few repeated tomato pics and internet links. Take it easy.

-- Xploreorganics, 5b Canada, LFD 06-20

I think we should take a poll on that Judy!
I don’t know why you are constantly trying to undermine me and bullying me but I am more than ready to take you on if that’s what you want.
Just say the word.

If I have made any friends here at all… please step forward as this crap has to stop!

-- I want to believe in a lot of things but, in the meantime I have to deal with the truth

Bob,

I am just simply picking up for another person you are throwing personal insults at. Please read the rules. Anyone who has been here long enough knows good and well who is the instigator here. I am just wondering why you haven’t been removed yet.

Leaving this up to Buli and Martin now. Keep posting Catspaw. Night Bob.

-- Xploreorganics, 5b Canada, LFD 06-20

I didnt find Bob’s post insulting at all….........I found it rather funny

-- Central northish Ontario

I think that Bobs posts are based on science and many others including mine are often based on emotions. Knowing that it is difficult to remain objective while emotions are running high.

I also know that I suck at spelling and for that matter, my grammer isnt that good either and having graduated high school with a 96% in English the 30 years of working in the trades has eroded my language skills down to about 3 very dirty words but I certainly do respect those who retain literacy skills.

My mother can spell every single word in the largest dictionary you can find, and she can tell you what the word means…...........I on the other hand cant get through the first page.

-- Central northish Ontario

While I respect the non-gardening topic of literacy, the insult I was refering to was the above post :

“Oh Bob, maybe Catspaw is a hockey fan” Not likely, probably just illiterate.
Actually Robin, I think Catspaw is just an agitator . He hangs around here and never posts a bloody thing that’s even remotely interesting as far as gardens are concerned then shoots out darts trying to start a quarrel.
More to be pitied than praised.

A bit harsh in my opinion.

RULES:

•Be civil, courteous and respectful to all.
•Keep your posts appropriate for our members of all ages to read/see.
•Don’t get personal. A good general rule to follow is, “criticize ideas, not people”.
•We do not tolerate abusive, malicious, personal attacks.
•Debates with other member(s) that are not beneficial to the site as a whole are to be done through the private message system.

-- Xploreorganics, 5b Canada, LFD 06-20

I have work to do.

I am building a dining table thats 4’ wide x 10’ long made out of timber salvaged from the clients old cottage. The wood was in such a bad condition that I had to laminate it to newer pieces of wood, then rip and glue the top together. It then gets a floating heavy frame mitered around it. Even the tapered shaker legs need compound miters…...................heavy duty….........gotto love a challenge

As I have American relatives and my ancestory on my mothers side goes right back to Plymouth Rock and being a second generation Canadian on my fathers side I feel obligated to say that the funniest show I have ever seen is Rick Mercers “Poking fun at Americans”

The Eygptian Empire died out, as did the Greeks, the Mongels, The Romans, and every great nation has had its day…...............perhaps the Americans have had theirs, perhaps not. I was never so happy to see an African American as President

I had to change the subject.

The original post was about “literacy”...................nothing more, nothing less. English is the international language of both the skies and seas and despite being a chop suey language of germanic, french, and latin to name a few this mishmash of nonsense is what it is, and the correct spelling is generally British in origin and use, not American.

-- Central northish Ontario

Actually, I am a hockey fan when it comes to playing (I really have no interest in watching sports.) I played for four years and averaged over a point per game as right defense. For being a crappy skater, I was rather proud of that. BTW, american style hockey is crap and the euro-finesse is where it’s at.

I thought my last post was an obvious attempt at light hearted humor. It’s the only way I can decompress from my four concurrent careers. I oversee two trusts and stock portfolios for two paper corporations, I’m a home builder, a full-time millwright, and trying to develop a farm/market operation. That’s probably why Bob hasn’t seen any “worthwhile” posts from me for awhile.

Bob can’t insult me because he won’t be able to find an article written by someone else to refer to.

Now….that’s an insult.

With that I bid you adieu (is that spelled correctly?) ....oh…wait a minute….I don’t care.

[The powers that be may delete this post from this thread….I wouldn’t be insulted by it.]

-- arborial reconfiguration specialist......Zone out....(USA 5)

If things are posted as a joke, it’s best to use email etiquette rules and post your smileys or sarcastic grins… because body language and tone is not always discernible via the written word. I have seen plenty of flame wars erupt due to a missing emoticon.

I am an anglophone born in Quebec, so I don’t really care if you call me a Canadian or a Canadien. I know my history, at least the way it’s taught here. The English did not conquer the French in Quebec. It was simply bad timing due to the ice flow situation (LOL – seriously that’s what we were taught!). The theme was “it could have gone either way” so I figure I could adopt either spelling.

I also tend to drop the “u” when writing for an American only audience and make darned sure it’s there if the audience is Canadian or British. It’s not only important to be literate (words, words, words) but culturally literate.

Teach your children (or employees, if you have no children!) to communicate well, and to understand context.

-- Zone 4a or 4b... depending on where you are standing!

Hear, hear!

-- the day you quit learning is the day you quit living.

Something way off topic, but greenthumb referred to Rick Mercer. Did anyone vote “yes” to have Stockwell Day change his name to Doris? That was back in his “This hour has 22 minutes” days. I think I laughed as soon as I heard of it, and for at least a week solid after voting for it…

-- Zone 4a or 4b... depending on where you are standing!

We see the same thing down here in the states. The kids today want to speak ‘ebonics’...some street slang that is so imbecilic to me that when I hear it spoken on TV, I can’t even understand it. They are butchering the English language. Makes me glad me and mine didn’t have kids. I don’t even want to think about what parents have to go through raising their children properly today.
And a real pet peeve, is when I see a commercial that has the words mis-spelled on sign-age, etc. The corporations pay millions for an advertisement, only to have it ruined by some hot shot kid that never learned proper English.

-- Alynxia****Set yourself as the standard.****

times are a-changing; that is for sure!
Although English is becoming the common language around the world, the dialects are so unique that they are like different languages.

-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a) http://www.execulink.com/~yohan

in a recent survey done in newfoundland about “Aspirin” 97% couldnt get the lid off and the remaining 3 % choked on the cotton ball…hahahahaha

-- Central northish Ontario

Your’e right Debbie. But even when Canadians, New Zealanders, Australians, and most Brits speak English, I can understand it perfectly. It’s funny that some of my own people can’t speak it. I have asked my husband to translate something we’re listening to at times, and even he doesn’t understand it.

Lol Greenthumb, are they trying to swallow the pills directly out of the bottle??? :)

-- Alynxia****Set yourself as the standard.****