California Students Are Poor Spellers

* Your May 29 article, “How Our Kidz Spel: What’s the Big Deel?” reveals that poor spelling is being institutionalized under “holistic” teaching concepts. Spelling is a form of discipline, a practice sorely needed in California today. It is easy to laugh and brush aside the errors of two dozen eighth-graders as being just a fluke. However, the results of this lax attitude toward spelling and grammar are apparent in college.

I teach biochemistry to junior and senior premedical students at UCLA. I was appalled that the majority of e-mail messages that I received from these students were littered with spelling and grammatical errors. During tests where the question specified “answer in a complete grammatically correct sentence” some students asked what a sentence was. If these students can’t spell or write correctly, why should we assume that they will have the discipline to master practices such as neurosurgery in a few years?

A house is only as strong as its foundation. Some day soon, the people who set these educational policies may see the effect of their work. The last thing they will read before going under anesthesia will be, “Breth deply and cownt two fifty. Tri tu realax.”

CHRIS KERFOOT

Los Angeles

* If Dan Quayle misspelled potato today, he would be hailed as a creative person. At least he tried.

BILL and SHIRLEY GLASGOW

Lake Arrowhead

* You claim that “holistic” practices caused a decline of student spelling skills in America over the past 10 years, then note that a Gallup poll found many adults misspell words. So where’s the decline? The Iowa Test of Basic Skills cited is not a representative sample of U.S. students, and is thus not evidence of any drop nationwide.

In California, there are no data showing that spelling scores have declined since the mid-1980s. There is, however, considerable research showing that spelling comes largely from reading. But you can’t read if there aren’t any books, and this is the true problem: California has the worst school library system in the country.

JEFF McQUILLAN

Assistant Professor

Division of Education

Cal State Fullerton

* Spelling, as pronunciation, has evolved from a mishmash of cultural influences almost as varied as evolution overall. And it’s a mess! Students and teachers are right to rebel.

Surely the answer to the problem of correct or incorrect spelling is to change the spelling.

Invented spelling shows the way. And the kids themselves should do it. Let’s gather a team of our brightest to lead us as to how our words should sensibly be spelled: rationally phonetic but with simple codes to differentiate meaning.

Then we could get really smart and devise a true and effective international language (with spelling) and take one giant step for mankind toward peace on Earth.

BRUCE BARRY

Beverly Hills