That's a pretty simple explanation, but basically accurate.
There are people who are paid by the publishers of dictionaries to read--everything from grocery store fliers to toothpaste tubes to newspapers to novels to academic works, you name it--and make note when they see a slight shift in how a word is used or if they see a newly coined term. I don't know if they've automated the process in the 20 years since I worked on the dictionary, but they used to cut out the word in its context and glue that onto a 3 x 5 card. Every week or two they came into the office and filed all these cards alphabetically.
Than, when the senior editors were working on a new edition, they went word-by-word through the old one. They would look through all those citations that the readers had filed, consult other dictionaries and reference books, and discuss all this among themselves, and decide whether a definition should be added or changed (or dropped). Once in a while one of these senior editors would go around to each person in the office and ask something like this: "When I say 'earth tones,' what does that mean to you?" Each of us would answer and she would take that into account when making her decision.
I was just a freelance proofreader/keyboarder, but I loved the heck out of that job. It was the most interesting work in the editorial field that I've ever done. And except for the psycho people (see my response to DMiller), the people were bright and clever and great fun. Alas, when the freelance gig ended, I moved on, but it sure was enjoyable while it lasted.
Actually, you're wrong as far as the meaning of what I wrote, George. I don't mean that I write and speak at the same time (e.g. "I write as I speak"). I mean that my writing is like my speech. If you were to hear me speak and then read something I have written, you could hear me saying it.
I presume that you're joking here, Belle, since I'm sure you know that as can mean "in the same manner" as well as "simultaneously."
I'm taking this whole thread with tongue firmly in cheek. I'm not one to nitpick, usually. I wouldn't even tell Chas how to spell avatar!
A figure of speech in which a word or phrase that ordinarily designates one thing is used to designate another, thus making an implicit comparison, as in “a sea of troubles” or “All the world's a stage” (Shakespeare).
One thing conceived as representing another; a symbol: “Hollywood has always been an irresistible, prefabricated metaphor for the crass, the materialistic, the shallow, and the craven” (Neal Gabler).
simile n.
A figure of speech in which two essentially unlike things are compared, often in a phrase introduced by like or as, as in “How like the winter hath my absence been” or “So are you to my thoughts as food to life” (Shakespeare).
I'm drawing a parallel here. This thread to me, is proof that most if not all of us have many concrete thoughts about grammar and spelling, even though there's no requirement on GSC to follow any such rules. Does this mean we were brainwashed by the elementary school teachers who taught us to think about grammar and spelling? Did they program us to the end that we need recovery from abuse?
If you answered 'no' to both questions, then just maybe it's not so unnatural for us to have concrete thoughts about life based on TWI. Just a thought.
Both like and as are used in similes, but not interchangeably. Briefly, like is used to compare nouns; as is used to compare verbs. A fuller treatment can be found HERE.
Using johniam's example, I could say either "Grammar school was like TWI" or "Grammar school brainwashed us as TWI did." Both are similes.
I thought VP did a good job in LV of showing the differences between a similie, metaphor, and the third one, implication (hypocatastasis..?). But he said that in educational circles then (1982) that most figurative wording was called 'metaphorical' even if that wasn't the correct word for the situation. So even THIS aspect of English has evolved somewhat.
In a social setting, amongst friends or business/work peop's, I'd want to be considerate of the other person's feelings, probably wouldn't blurt out an error if I heard it or saw it. I can think of a lot of circumstances where it would be right to make the correction but do it carefully. For instance in a presentation setting, where someone's reporting on something or presenting some information - if there was a typo on a handout or PowerPoint , I wouldn't red-pen it and note every error for the group while we were meeting. That would likely embarrass the presenter. I'd probably note them later, afterwards.
I see situations where people do note every little item while a presentation is in progress and it always bugs me. It cuts the flow and I guess I interpret it as the person trying to belittle the other or show how "smart" they are themselves. That may or may not the be the case but it's the way I usually process that kind of thing. Unless it's causing the whole thing to tank I don't see the need to do it that way.
Spellcheck corrrects spelling but not grammar, so if I wrote "bear" when I meant "bare" it wouldn't catch it. I see a lot of errors made in work product that are the result of that.
Email - I stared (started) on email years ago, back in the early 90's and at that time it wasn't considered a formal means of communication for business. Everyone I corresponded with used whatever formatting they wanted. Cap's weren't always used, and everything was formatted with dashes and slash marks. That was more of a "geeker" environment. It's evolved quite a bit since then and it took me awhile to accept it as more than a basic and minimal form of communication. Being better with language than I am at typing, I have to watch out. I tend to make mistakes due to my four fingers and two thumbs typing technique. I still do view board postings like we have on GS as a hybrid form of communication that allows for some latitude. The internet has it's own form of language - "LOL", all of that, and I don't keep up with all of it. I tend to go back and forth between chicken scratch and some middle ground of normal writing form.
My work requires using standards and guidelines, I use the A.P. style book, a dictionary and whatever spellcheck is available. I also have someone else read through what I've done too. Sometimes I just don't see an error right in front of me, but someone else doing a fresh read will catch it right off.
I think of the saying "pride comes before a fall" in this context too. If a person sets forth as if they're the final word on a subject they're likely going to be critiqued more strictly. If I make fun of someone else's opinions or ideas and put mine forth as being superior I'm opening myself up to wider criticism, I think. Someone's bound to say "if you're so smart how come you can't spell?" And if my ideas are so grand and important why not take the time to make them readable?
There may not be a relationship between what's written and spelling but if I come off full of myself I'm setting myself up to be taken down a noch. Notch. Naugch.
Sorry, Sprawled, but I would have to disagree. I've seen lots of changes in usage in my 20+ years as an editor/copy editor, but it is still incorrect to use "they" with a singular antecedent.
i get it, linda. i'm usually a stickler for these things, but when what's "right" is so awkward (i always trip over "he or she"), i'm happy to see an evolution in what's acceptable. but i'm an ADVERTISING copywriter--and you know how loosey-goosey we are!
I'm still trying to recover from "impact" as a verb
gee, i thought impact was always a verb. (just fyi, the American Heritage Dictionary says "Impact has been used as a verb since 1601, when it meant 'to fix or pack in,' and its modern, figurative use dates from 1935.") but when you talk about nouns turning into verbs, "task" has become my favorite hate: "I've been tasked with this responsibility." man, that one bothers me.
OKAY - Caveat here -- I am a total Learning Disabilties advocate, what many don't realize 1 out of 5 has some degree of dyslexia. 20% of our population--we have successfully chased of 19% here at GSC. I am not happy about that. It is embarrassing that a place of healing for so many has injured others. I am on several news-net lists...here is a case of poor and successful techniques---but I really think Miss Manners would agree....correcting people here is inappropriate. I would further say it is callous.
"Dyslexia series
6/26/2007 11:45:40 AM
Daily Journal
PHOTO: (Ginny Miller)
A teacher at Shelby Oaks, a public elementary school in Memphis, leads her kindergarten class through reading exercises. Shelby Oaks uses the Orton-Gillingham multi-sensory approach to teach reading to all students in grades K-6.
(THIRD IN A THREE-PART SERIES)
By Ginny Miller
Daily Journal
TUPELO - Helen Pitts is convinced more children with dyslexia could be helped if teachers were better trained to deal with the reading disorder.
"The colleges have failed us and the administration has failed us," said Pitts, who sent her son, Zachary, to a private school in Tennessee when it was clear his elementary school teachers in Tupelo had done all they could to help him.
"Zachary had been there with loving, caring teachers for five years," she continued. "I believe they were doing all that could be done. The answer is definitely in that teacher training. The colleges have got to do better."
But Dr. Tom Burnham, dean of the School of Education at the University of Mississippi, said teacher candidates from Ole Miss receive adequate instruction in how to teach all students to read.
"Everyone wants to be responsive to the issues they see in teaching and immediately they say they want to look at teacher training," Burnham said. "I can tell you that our approach is a comprehensive approach to teaching reading. We try to be inclusive of the material and reading strategies, covering the knowledge base that is balanced. We have to reach all students."
At a minimum, elementary education majors at Mississippi universities are required to take 15 hours of reading, including three hours on reading diagnosis and intervention, said Dr. Angela Raines, a professor in the School of Education at Ole Miss.
That course, Raines said, is designed to give teacher candidates diagnostic techniques they can use to pinpoint their students' strengths and weaknesses in order to provide the best instruction.
"They learn hundreds of techniques to meet the needs of all kids," she said. "My goal is to give them as many tools as they can put into their toolbox."
One of the things teachers are trained to spot, Raines said, is whether or not beginning readers can "decode" words.
"Decoding is being able to look at the word and pronounce the word," she explained, giving the example of c-a-t. "A beginning reader would look at each letter individually and eventually be able to blend that together."
'Something in the brain'
But because dyslexia is a language processing problem, Raines said, students with the reading disorder can't take print on the page and produce the oral pronunciation.
"There's something in the brain, they can't process the language like other ones can," she said. "If they see the word know,' that is confusing because the k' is virtually silent. So they have difficulty discriminating between the letters and the sounds."
Because technically dyslexia is a learning disability, many students with the reading disorder are placed in special education classes. In the Tupelo Public School District, former director of special services Dr. Susan Johnstone said special education is an option only when other interventions have failed.
"Many children with dyslexia fall into the realm of special education, which just means they have learning needs that require special attention," said Dr. Kent Coffey, a professor of special education at Mississippi State University, which also trains future teachers. "Fifty-one percent of the children in special ed have a reading disability."
Coffey contends that MSU's teacher candidates in special ed are "trained and ready" to help all disabled students.
"I can tell you from the perspective of special education, our students take a series of courses looking at all the mild and moderate disabilities," he said. "The special ed program here has a course in assessment, looking at how you identify children with disabilities and determining their functional level. In addition to taking courses in assessment of learning disabilities, then we have three methods courses. All of the special ed majors take two reading courses."
He recognizes, however, the social stigma attached to special education that many parents aren't comfortable with.
"It's tough to just run over that and ignore it because it can be a concern for kids," Coffey said, noting that they still benefit from the multi-sensory approach.
Different approaches
If multi-sensory programs work, Pitts thinks they should be employed at every grade level for every reader. She cites success at Shelby Oaks, a public school in Memphis that uses an Orton-Gillingham multi-sensory approach to teach reading to all students in grades K-6.
"They're not even testing, they're just teaching kids how to read," she said. "After I went to Shelby Oaks that first time, I am totally convinced the public schools can do it."
In the Lee County School District, struggling readers are administered a battery of tests to identify specific language processing problems and are assisted through a program called Reaching Reader Success.
"It's very much been a success," said Becky Hendrix of the county schools, which has had a dyslexia program going on three years. "I would say right now we have about 200 students that we've identified. We do the screening and we do further assessments."
With no single test for dyslexia, the Tupelo Public School District tests all kindergartners upon enrollment using the Early Prevention of School Failure, according to Deputy Superintendent David Meadows.
Teachers then tailor their instruction to meet each student's needs. For the 2007-2008 school year, an intervention specialist has been hired to oversee help for students with reading disabilities.
Teachers should not stop teaching until students learn, Pitts insisted. "Why can't we just get down to it and say reading is important? If somebody is capable of reading ... we owe it to them to teach them. Public education owes those people that."
State office aware
Kristopher Kaase, associate superintendent of the Mississippi Department of Education's Office of Academic Education, said his office recognizes that, based on national research, "approximately 10-15 percent of any population exhibits characteristics of dyslexia."
"We are aware of this population of students in our state and are making efforts through awareness, professional development and implementation of the Three Tier Model of Instructional Intervention to identify these students and provide them with the necessary interventions," Kaase said, adding that dyslexia grants are provided to school districts to provide such intervention.
Still, there's no easy answer, Burnham said, considering that reading is a maturation process and many children enter school with a limited learning background.
"Everyone is always looking to identify the problem with reading, and it's never that simple," he observed. "There's no one simple solution."
Contact Daily Journal education writer Ginny Miller at ginny.miller@djournal.com or 678-1582.
Here are all three days of the An Obstacle to Overcome Series:
Sprawled: Ohhhhhhh an ad copy writer. This knowledge about you has greatly impacted me!! I am tasked with interpreting these grammar rules every day and, quite frankly, it's headaching me. <_< I'd like to regift my copy of Strunk & White to someone else and and let him/her deal with all these rules for a while. :D :D :D (Re: impact as a verb, I had read that; but I believe the usage was different when it was first used that way. I'll have to look it up when I have time, or it'll bug me.)
WW: I hate to see anyone get run off, but in all honesty, I've seen very few people correcting other people's spelling and grammar on GSC. Maybe I just haven't been reading the threads where it's happened. The only time I've done it was once when someone else criticized someone for spelling and made a big ol' grammar mistake in doing so. (There's some Internet "law" that says anytime someone corrects someone else's grammar or spelling, the person doing the correcting will also make a grammar/spelling error...I forget what it's called.)
I know what you're saying, though. I'm dyslexic myself (go figure, a dyslexic copy editor and proofreader). I was fortunate enough to learn how to compensate, but I know not everyone can.
I look at it this way: I figure we all have different skills and talents. I'm thankful I have mine, and I'm glad everyone else has theirs. Makes for a lovely mix! I can't draw a straight line, and I so admire people who can paint and draw. I'm a so-so cook, and I love to read the posts in the cooking forum. If we were all professional grammarians, all we'd do is sit around and argue about commas and such. How boring would that be?!?
Come to think of it, some of our more creative spellers are among my favorite posters.
My literature professor knew the difference between the three.
If I remember correctly, vic used an illustration for those figures that he lifted from Bullinger..
HEHEHE!
Hey, Mr. Hamm.
You can't have a difference BETWEEN three.
( That would call for the word "among".)
Awww! chill----------I'm just yankin' yer chain.
I think if you understand the person's point well enough to understand the corrected form, as I did in this case, then the act of correcting them is rather pointless. See my point?
Wow, I didn't know it really bugged people when others don't speak or spell correctly. I have 8 grandchildren from the ages of 4 to 20. I MySpace, email and IM them and I'm lucky if I even understand what they are saying sometimes. I have to write back and say, "What does 'iudc' mean?". They are so kind to their grammy and with patience teach me their lingo and spelling that the younger generations use on the puters these days !!!
I don't correct anyone either as I'm not out to make a person feel bad because they don't know grammar (me neither) or can't spell correctly". I just enjoy the conversation and if I don't understand what they are saying I ask them to repeat it - usually I can get it on the 2nd try since people have a habit of repeating things differently the 2nd time.
And Linda - you wonder why I love you! You are a sweetie and I love reading your posts. xo Edi
Linda - the sad reason you can't think of them is because they split to avoid further embarrassment, they have dealt with that all their lives. My husband is only one of many that won't come here...and that is also why several ex-posters I know can't chat in the chat room, by the time they process everything, the subject has split 3 ways and the original response that "said chatter" has worked hard at figuring out has become obsolete. Consequently, they give up. Every time this subject comes up and I stick up for the "little" guy, I get several PM's telling me how hard it is and of course this is from GSC readers--NOT posters.
I am a product of an English teacher father, and a secretary mother, so I guess I never stood a chance to be a bad grammarian. I would say I'm passable, and I enjoy playing with the language to enhance communication. But I am very suspicious of people who emphasize grammar over content. They are so distracted with being right that they just might miss something profound.
My boss LOVES to turn two words into a single adjective, but never with a hyphen. I think I probably hyphenate too much. Any of you logophiles have a rule of thumb for this? I have read up a little, but would love to hear your opinion. For example:
I am a product of an English teacher father, and a secretary mother, so I guess I never stood a chance to be a bad grammarian. I would say I'm passable, and I enjoy playing with the language to enhance communication. But I am very suspicious of people who emphasize grammar over content. They are so distracted with being right that they just might miss something profound.
Regards,
Shaz
This post is the epitome of what (most) of us are trying to say.
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Dooj: bingo!
That's a pretty simple explanation, but basically accurate.
There are people who are paid by the publishers of dictionaries to read--everything from grocery store fliers to toothpaste tubes to newspapers to novels to academic works, you name it--and make note when they see a slight shift in how a word is used or if they see a newly coined term. I don't know if they've automated the process in the 20 years since I worked on the dictionary, but they used to cut out the word in its context and glue that onto a 3 x 5 card. Every week or two they came into the office and filed all these cards alphabetically.
Than, when the senior editors were working on a new edition, they went word-by-word through the old one. They would look through all those citations that the readers had filed, consult other dictionaries and reference books, and discuss all this among themselves, and decide whether a definition should be added or changed (or dropped). Once in a while one of these senior editors would go around to each person in the office and ask something like this: "When I say 'earth tones,' what does that mean to you?" Each of us would answer and she would take that into account when making her decision.
I was just a freelance proofreader/keyboarder, but I loved the heck out of that job. It was the most interesting work in the editorial field that I've ever done. And except for the psycho people (see my response to DMiller), the people were bright and clever and great fun. Alas, when the freelance gig ended, I moved on, but it sure was enjoyable while it lasted.
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GeorgeStGeorge
I presume that you're joking here, Belle, since I'm sure you know that as can mean "in the same manner" as well as "simultaneously."
I'm taking this whole thread with tongue firmly in cheek. I'm not one to nitpick, usually. I wouldn't even tell Chas how to spell avatar!
George
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doojable
OK simple question here:
Isn't a metaphor (NOT a "meadow for"...;)) defined as a comparison using "like or as"?
I'm wondering because then Belle's usage would be correct....
But what do I know - I'm Italian.....
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dmiller
metaphor n.
A figure of speech in which a word or phrase that ordinarily designates one thing is used to designate another, thus making an implicit comparison, as in “a sea of troubles” or “All the world's a stage” (Shakespeare).
One thing conceived as representing another; a symbol: “Hollywood has always been an irresistible, prefabricated metaphor for the crass, the materialistic, the shallow, and the craven” (Neal Gabler).
simile n.
A figure of speech in which two essentially unlike things are compared, often in a phrase introduced by like or as, as in “How like the winter hath my absence been” or “So are you to my thoughts as food to life” (Shakespeare).
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johniam
I'm drawing a parallel here. This thread to me, is proof that most if not all of us have many concrete thoughts about grammar and spelling, even though there's no requirement on GSC to follow any such rules. Does this mean we were brainwashed by the elementary school teachers who taught us to think about grammar and spelling? Did they program us to the end that we need recovery from abuse?
If you answered 'no' to both questions, then just maybe it's not so unnatural for us to have concrete thoughts about life based on TWI. Just a thought.
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GeorgeStGeorge
Both like and as are used in similes, but not interchangeably. Briefly, like is used to compare nouns; as is used to compare verbs. A fuller treatment can be found HERE.
Using johniam's example, I could say either "Grammar school was like TWI" or "Grammar school brainwashed us as TWI did." Both are similes.
George
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johniam
I thought VP did a good job in LV of showing the differences between a similie, metaphor, and the third one, implication (hypocatastasis..?). But he said that in educational circles then (1982) that most figurative wording was called 'metaphorical' even if that wasn't the correct word for the situation. So even THIS aspect of English has evolved somewhat.
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socks
In a social setting, amongst friends or business/work peop's, I'd want to be considerate of the other person's feelings, probably wouldn't blurt out an error if I heard it or saw it. I can think of a lot of circumstances where it would be right to make the correction but do it carefully. For instance in a presentation setting, where someone's reporting on something or presenting some information - if there was a typo on a handout or PowerPoint , I wouldn't red-pen it and note every error for the group while we were meeting. That would likely embarrass the presenter. I'd probably note them later, afterwards.
I see situations where people do note every little item while a presentation is in progress and it always bugs me. It cuts the flow and I guess I interpret it as the person trying to belittle the other or show how "smart" they are themselves. That may or may not the be the case but it's the way I usually process that kind of thing. Unless it's causing the whole thing to tank I don't see the need to do it that way.
Spellcheck corrrects spelling but not grammar, so if I wrote "bear" when I meant "bare" it wouldn't catch it. I see a lot of errors made in work product that are the result of that.
Email - I stared (started) on email years ago, back in the early 90's and at that time it wasn't considered a formal means of communication for business. Everyone I corresponded with used whatever formatting they wanted. Cap's weren't always used, and everything was formatted with dashes and slash marks. That was more of a "geeker" environment. It's evolved quite a bit since then and it took me awhile to accept it as more than a basic and minimal form of communication. Being better with language than I am at typing, I have to watch out. I tend to make mistakes due to my four fingers and two thumbs typing technique. I still do view board postings like we have on GS as a hybrid form of communication that allows for some latitude. The internet has it's own form of language - "LOL", all of that, and I don't keep up with all of it. I tend to go back and forth between chicken scratch and some middle ground of normal writing form.
My work requires using standards and guidelines, I use the A.P. style book, a dictionary and whatever spellcheck is available. I also have someone else read through what I've done too. Sometimes I just don't see an error right in front of me, but someone else doing a fresh read will catch it right off.
I think of the saying "pride comes before a fall" in this context too. If a person sets forth as if they're the final word on a subject they're likely going to be critiqued more strictly. If I make fun of someone else's opinions or ideas and put mine forth as being superior I'm opening myself up to wider criticism, I think. Someone's bound to say "if you're so smart how come you can't spell?" And if my ideas are so grand and important why not take the time to make them readable?
There may not be a relationship between what's written and spelling but if I come off full of myself I'm setting myself up to be taken down a noch. Notch. Naugch.
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GeorgeStGeorge
The CEO of our company came to Texas and gave a presentation on our new paradigm. One key slide said:
CONTINUOUS PURSUIT OF EXELLENCE
Needless to say, I did not point out the irony.
George
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Ham
My literature professor knew the difference between the three.
If I remember correctly, vic used an illustration for those figures that he lifted from Bullinger..
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sprawled out
i get it, linda. i'm usually a stickler for these things, but when what's "right" is so awkward (i always trip over "he or she"), i'm happy to see an evolution in what's acceptable. but i'm an ADVERTISING copywriter--and you know how loosey-goosey we are!
gee, i thought impact was always a verb. (just fyi, the American Heritage Dictionary says "Impact has been used as a verb since 1601, when it meant 'to fix or pack in,' and its modern, figurative use dates from 1935.") but when you talk about nouns turning into verbs, "task" has become my favorite hate: "I've been tasked with this responsibility." man, that one bothers me.
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washingtonweather
OKAY - Caveat here -- I am a total Learning Disabilties advocate, what many don't realize 1 out of 5 has some degree of dyslexia. 20% of our population--we have successfully chased of 19% here at GSC. I am not happy about that. It is embarrassing that a place of healing for so many has injured others. I am on several news-net lists...here is a case of poor and successful techniques---but I really think Miss Manners would agree....correcting people here is inappropriate. I would further say it is callous.
"Dyslexia series
6/26/2007 11:45:40 AM
Daily Journal
PHOTO: (Ginny Miller)
A teacher at Shelby Oaks, a public elementary school in Memphis, leads her kindergarten class through reading exercises. Shelby Oaks uses the Orton-Gillingham multi-sensory approach to teach reading to all students in grades K-6.
(THIRD IN A THREE-PART SERIES)
By Ginny Miller
Daily Journal
TUPELO - Helen Pitts is convinced more children with dyslexia could be helped if teachers were better trained to deal with the reading disorder.
"The colleges have failed us and the administration has failed us," said Pitts, who sent her son, Zachary, to a private school in Tennessee when it was clear his elementary school teachers in Tupelo had done all they could to help him.
"Zachary had been there with loving, caring teachers for five years," she continued. "I believe they were doing all that could be done. The answer is definitely in that teacher training. The colleges have got to do better."
But Dr. Tom Burnham, dean of the School of Education at the University of Mississippi, said teacher candidates from Ole Miss receive adequate instruction in how to teach all students to read.
"Everyone wants to be responsive to the issues they see in teaching and immediately they say they want to look at teacher training," Burnham said. "I can tell you that our approach is a comprehensive approach to teaching reading. We try to be inclusive of the material and reading strategies, covering the knowledge base that is balanced. We have to reach all students."
At a minimum, elementary education majors at Mississippi universities are required to take 15 hours of reading, including three hours on reading diagnosis and intervention, said Dr. Angela Raines, a professor in the School of Education at Ole Miss.
That course, Raines said, is designed to give teacher candidates diagnostic techniques they can use to pinpoint their students' strengths and weaknesses in order to provide the best instruction.
"They learn hundreds of techniques to meet the needs of all kids," she said. "My goal is to give them as many tools as they can put into their toolbox."
One of the things teachers are trained to spot, Raines said, is whether or not beginning readers can "decode" words.
"Decoding is being able to look at the word and pronounce the word," she explained, giving the example of c-a-t. "A beginning reader would look at each letter individually and eventually be able to blend that together."
'Something in the brain'
But because dyslexia is a language processing problem, Raines said, students with the reading disorder can't take print on the page and produce the oral pronunciation.
"There's something in the brain, they can't process the language like other ones can," she said. "If they see the word know,' that is confusing because the k' is virtually silent. So they have difficulty discriminating between the letters and the sounds."
Because technically dyslexia is a learning disability, many students with the reading disorder are placed in special education classes. In the Tupelo Public School District, former director of special services Dr. Susan Johnstone said special education is an option only when other interventions have failed.
"Many children with dyslexia fall into the realm of special education, which just means they have learning needs that require special attention," said Dr. Kent Coffey, a professor of special education at Mississippi State University, which also trains future teachers. "Fifty-one percent of the children in special ed have a reading disability."
Coffey contends that MSU's teacher candidates in special ed are "trained and ready" to help all disabled students.
"I can tell you from the perspective of special education, our students take a series of courses looking at all the mild and moderate disabilities," he said. "The special ed program here has a course in assessment, looking at how you identify children with disabilities and determining their functional level. In addition to taking courses in assessment of learning disabilities, then we have three methods courses. All of the special ed majors take two reading courses."
He recognizes, however, the social stigma attached to special education that many parents aren't comfortable with.
"It's tough to just run over that and ignore it because it can be a concern for kids," Coffey said, noting that they still benefit from the multi-sensory approach.
Different approaches
If multi-sensory programs work, Pitts thinks they should be employed at every grade level for every reader. She cites success at Shelby Oaks, a public school in Memphis that uses an Orton-Gillingham multi-sensory approach to teach reading to all students in grades K-6.
"They're not even testing, they're just teaching kids how to read," she said. "After I went to Shelby Oaks that first time, I am totally convinced the public schools can do it."
In the Lee County School District, struggling readers are administered a battery of tests to identify specific language processing problems and are assisted through a program called Reaching Reader Success.
"It's very much been a success," said Becky Hendrix of the county schools, which has had a dyslexia program going on three years. "I would say right now we have about 200 students that we've identified. We do the screening and we do further assessments."
With no single test for dyslexia, the Tupelo Public School District tests all kindergartners upon enrollment using the Early Prevention of School Failure, according to Deputy Superintendent David Meadows.
Teachers then tailor their instruction to meet each student's needs. For the 2007-2008 school year, an intervention specialist has been hired to oversee help for students with reading disabilities.
Teachers should not stop teaching until students learn, Pitts insisted. "Why can't we just get down to it and say reading is important? If somebody is capable of reading ... we owe it to them to teach them. Public education owes those people that."
State office aware
Kristopher Kaase, associate superintendent of the Mississippi Department of Education's Office of Academic Education, said his office recognizes that, based on national research, "approximately 10-15 percent of any population exhibits characteristics of dyslexia."
"We are aware of this population of students in our state and are making efforts through awareness, professional development and implementation of the Three Tier Model of Instructional Intervention to identify these students and provide them with the necessary interventions," Kaase said, adding that dyslexia grants are provided to school districts to provide such intervention.
Still, there's no easy answer, Burnham said, considering that reading is a maturation process and many children enter school with a limited learning background.
"Everyone is always looking to identify the problem with reading, and it's never that simple," he observed. "There's no one simple solution."
Contact Daily Journal education writer Ginny Miller at ginny.miller@djournal.com or 678-1582.
Here are all three days of the An Obstacle to Overcome Series:
Day One:
An Obstacle to Overcome
Day 2
Teaching dyslexics how to read
Day Three
Legislator works on dyslexia"
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Linda Z
Sprawled: Ohhhhhhh an ad copy writer. This knowledge about you has greatly impacted me!! I am tasked with interpreting these grammar rules every day and, quite frankly, it's headaching me. <_< I'd like to regift my copy of Strunk & White to someone else and and let him/her deal with all these rules for a while. :D :D :D (Re: impact as a verb, I had read that; but I believe the usage was different when it was first used that way. I'll have to look it up when I have time, or it'll bug me.)
WW: I hate to see anyone get run off, but in all honesty, I've seen very few people correcting other people's spelling and grammar on GSC. Maybe I just haven't been reading the threads where it's happened. The only time I've done it was once when someone else criticized someone for spelling and made a big ol' grammar mistake in doing so. (There's some Internet "law" that says anytime someone corrects someone else's grammar or spelling, the person doing the correcting will also make a grammar/spelling error...I forget what it's called.)
I know what you're saying, though. I'm dyslexic myself (go figure, a dyslexic copy editor and proofreader). I was fortunate enough to learn how to compensate, but I know not everyone can.
I look at it this way: I figure we all have different skills and talents. I'm thankful I have mine, and I'm glad everyone else has theirs. Makes for a lovely mix! I can't draw a straight line, and I so admire people who can paint and draw. I'm a so-so cook, and I love to read the posts in the cooking forum. If we were all professional grammarians, all we'd do is sit around and argue about commas and such. How boring would that be?!?
Come to think of it, some of our more creative spellers are among my favorite posters.
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waysider
HEHEHE!
Hey, Mr. Hamm.
You can't have a difference BETWEEN three.
( That would call for the word "among".)
Awww! chill----------I'm just yankin' yer chain.
I think if you understand the person's point well enough to understand the corrected form, as I did in this case, then the act of correcting them is rather pointless. See my point?
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Edi
Wow, I didn't know it really bugged people when others don't speak or spell correctly. I have 8 grandchildren from the ages of 4 to 20. I MySpace, email and IM them and I'm lucky if I even understand what they are saying sometimes. I have to write back and say, "What does 'iudc' mean?". They are so kind to their grammy and with patience teach me their lingo and spelling that the younger generations use on the puters these days !!!
I don't correct anyone either as I'm not out to make a person feel bad because they don't know grammar (me neither) or can't spell correctly". I just enjoy the conversation and if I don't understand what they are saying I ask them to repeat it - usually I can get it on the 2nd try since people have a habit of repeating things differently the 2nd time.
And Linda - you wonder why I love you! You are a sweetie and I love reading your posts. xo Edi
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T-Bone
Im 2 aFradE to post on tHis tread,
[editTedd 2 make the grAmmre go0der then whAt it was/is?]
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doojable
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socks
The ground is thirsty.
Apparently GS has identified the true course of this thread - up top it says "Stop Satan Now'
I had no idea spelling was THAT important! 
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washingtonweather
Linda - the sad reason you can't think of them is because they split to avoid further embarrassment, they have dealt with that all their lives. My husband is only one of many that won't come here...and that is also why several ex-posters I know can't chat in the chat room, by the time they process everything, the subject has split 3 ways and the original response that "said chatter" has worked hard at figuring out has become obsolete. Consequently, they give up. Every time this subject comes up and I stick up for the "little" guy, I get several PM's telling me how hard it is and of course this is from GSC readers--NOT posters.
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shazdancer
Wow, youse guys, kewl thread. ;)
I am a product of an English teacher father, and a secretary mother, so I guess I never stood a chance to be a bad grammarian. I would say I'm passable, and I enjoy playing with the language to enhance communication. But I am very suspicious of people who emphasize grammar over content. They are so distracted with being right that they just might miss something profound.
Regards,
Shaz
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shazdancer
Okay, geekerinos, so what about...
...hyphenated descriptors?
My boss LOVES to turn two words into a single adjective, but never with a hyphen. I think I probably hyphenate too much. Any of you logophiles have a rule of thumb for this? I have read up a little, but would love to hear your opinion. For example:
"We formulated a long range plan"
v.
"We formulated a long-range plan"
Have at it.
-- Shaz
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dmiller
This post is the epitome of what (most) of us are trying to say.
Thank you Shaz!! :)
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now I see
Right on Shaz, you hit the nail on the head!
Edited by but now I seeThe times I've been told to correct something here, it was completely inappropriate.
The first time resulted in me erasing the thread I started trying to find someone, then the person I was trying to contact fell asleep about a week later, I'm not over that one yet.
The second time it happened, the poster dogged me on several posts and insisted I agree with him, and then went on to dog me the next time I posted on that forum. Completely rude and inappropriate behavior.
I also had someone insist that I was not allowed to thread creep on the thread he started! He shoulda noticed it was a dead thread that had run its course, and it was near the bottom of the page before I posted and injected new life into it. In my mind it wasn't even thread creep cause I thought my comments related to the subject, I just objected to the validity of his assertions and thought he was asking the wrong question.
I usually never care about spelling on any web board I post on, I care about spelling/grammar issues on business correspondence, but not here on a web forum.
The spelling nazi's remind me of legalists: those rejoicing and exhaulting themselves by your obedience to their rule.
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ChasUFarley
Does anyone else, besides me, find it interesting and ironic that those posters who have been "Grammar Nazis" have yet to post on this thread? <_<
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