When refering to yourself.............

HotToast said:

I hope that this is the right place to post this question, the forum does suggest that I can discuss grammar here.

Anyway I am a teacher and I have recently noticed that some students have started using "i" rather than "I" when refering to themselves in their written work.

I have also noticed this trend occuring on CF.

Does anyone know/ have any ideas why this is happening more often? I guess that if you do write "i" you can tell me why........

Thanks Toast.

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I think that it's simply a laziness issue. Usually in forums like these people pay less attention than they probably should to issues of grammer, and when you have students raised on that mindset, they believe that it is acceptable to use grammer like that in more formal writings.

Personally, I tend to not use proper grammer on cf, but I would never use "i" in a school paper or anything like that

When you type fast it's easier to skip capitals on any word. It bugs me to death. and with all the short hand and what not that people use. My mom works at a college and says that people use short hand in formal documents and everthing. I wonder how many of those students actually get good grades using short hand in everything.

Course it may depend on what grade you teach. If it's Kindergarden...well, that's just learning. If it's 7th grade then I'd say it's shorthand habbits.

"Reading maketh a full man, conference a ready man, and writing an exact man."Sir Francis Bacon: English author, courtier, & philosopher (1561 - 1626)

Sloppy writing only establishes inexact habits.

VickiY said:

"Reading maketh a full man, conference a ready man, and writing an exact man."Sir Francis Bacon: English author, courtier, & philosopher (1561 - 1626)

Sloppy writing only establishes inexact habits.

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I agree. I too think that this is a laziness issue....people online like to take short cuts wherever they can. However, what really irks me is the decline of writing in general. I now see news articles that use slang words and have poor grammar. The Yahoo News site comes to mind here.

The one word that gets right straight up my nose is "disrespecting". ARRRRRGGGGGGH!!!

when online, i never use capitalization. why? because i'm lazy and don't want to use the small amount of effort it takes to hit the shift and appropriate letter when typing. that goes for all capitalized words (with the exception of the names of God). i've decided that with all the formal writing i use during the week, i'm allowed one area of laziness in my life that i'm not being critiqued over.

anyway, improper grammar is one of my pet peeves. the same goes for mispronounciation of common words when speaking. i have to correct the misdeed. since the internet and instant messaging is easily accessible to younger children, habits are formed early on.

what's sad is the decline of reading in general. people are so impatient nowadays.

Whenever one publishes one's work, whether in the form of a post, or a weighty tome, one is responsible for how that work is perceived. As you say, the internet is open to everyone, even children. These children listen with half an ear to their teachers, who tell them one thing about how poor spelling, capitalization, and grammar are perceived in the real world, then, they come here and read posts. Posts that are written by adults, and by other children, and what do they see? They see people who use appalling grammar, and spelling, and who chose not to capitalize because this is the one area they wish to be lazy in. They notice that somehow, no one online comments that the message would be taken more seriously if properly phrased. They see that in the real world, those they wish to emulate cannot be bothered to attend to the details of their writing. So, tell me, why they should bother at all? As an adult, don't you think something should be said for the responsibility one has not to lead others into carelessness, and, to be frank, into ignorance?

Habits not consistently adhered to are lost. What children are taught in school is ignored until forgotten unless it is used, consistently.

How hard is it to set the example by checking posts for grammar, and hitting that shift key?

The difference between today's children and e.e.cummings is that cummings knew what the rules were, and chose to break them in poetic form. Today's children do not have that example before them, and often are not capable of realizing the rules that they are breaking, not through style, but through ignorance.

Languages don't stay constant over time. Maybe in a hundred years nobody will capitalize 'I'. So much for egoism =/.

oh, i just couldn't be bothered holding down the SHIFT key, but in written work, of course i'd use 'I'.

that's a MUST.

I've never really noticed

Well I'm dyslexic, and I type a lot faster than I really should. My grammar is horrible as well. In hand written work my capitals are all over the place, in the middle of words, some times every other character.

My issues all arise from speed, and not going back to proofread. Now I try to do that in all my professional dealings but in my personal I'm just too lazy to care...