Friday, January 29th, 2010

A Response to Adams Sherman Hill

Although Adams Sherman Hill's "An Answer to the cry for More English" was written over a hundred years ago, his concerns regarding a student's ability to produce grammatically correct, coherent, thought provoking commentary are quite relevant today. The teenies and betweenies of the new millennium have fallen victim to a new generation of communication which enables abbreviated, non-formal communication through the likes of social networking websites, online chat, and text messaging. Advances in communication technology are both exciting and convenient; they are not, however, beneficial to the enhancement of our rhetorical prowess. Sure, people are communicating more frequently than ever before, but at what scholarly level? The responsibility (dare I say burden) of reinforcing the importance of effective writing rests in the hands of today's composition enthusiasts and their colleagues respectively. According to Hill, in 1879 half of the students applying to Harvard failed the composition portions of the preliminary and admissions testing. Scary to think that the kids of the 19th century didn't have half the distractions that the youth of today has.

Hill points out, "The best talent in each school-it is not too much to say-cannot be better employed than in teaching the use of the great instrument of communication between man and man". Many business leaders have cited strong communication skills as among the most desirable attributes within the workplace. Heck, to even get a job you must construct a polished, cohesive resume, cover letter, and even web portfolio, none of which is possible without at least partial mastery of the written language. This is why more emphasis needs to be placed on developing effective writing skills over the course of a young adult's scholastic endeavors.

Quickly, before I run out of time, I'll touch on another observations made by Hill. At one point the author mentions the need to perfect one's mother language before considering learning a foreign language. I can't imagine a better suggestion in today's world.