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Three out of four teachers say social media is bad for students’ grammar

OAKLAND
August 30, 2017 12:05pm

• Bur half use it to better understand their students
• “A new layer of complexity for teachers trying to relate to and understand their students”

Another school year has started and, to gear up, teachers equip themselves with staplers, scissors… and Snapchat? Nearly three out of four teachers (73 percent) say social media and texting are bad for grammar and spelling, according to a study released Wednesday by Dictionary.com. But half (50 percent) use it to better understand their students, according to the survey. One-third (32 percent) of teachers say they see their students struggle with grammar, yet admit they care very little about it (15 percent) in comparison to other skills, like meaning and comprehension (64 percent). "Social media's impact on language and communication, especially among younger generations, adds a new layer of complexity for teachers trying to relate to and understand their students," says Liz McMillan, CEO of Dictionary.com. "These findings show how American teachers grapple with this shift in language – what, if any, slang or social shorthand is considered acceptable? Does comprehension matter more than spelling in a world of auto-correct?" Social media has infiltrated the American classroom, the survey says. Not only do teachers refer to social media to better understand their students' pop culture references (50 percent), more than one-third of teachers are scooping up that knowledge and using memes, emojis, and GIFs (37 percent) to drive home a point taught in their classrooms. Yet, at the same time, teachers think social media and/or texting have a negative impact on their students' grammar and spelling skills. Teachers say they think the majority of their students don't believe grammar and spelling are important (66 percent). Perhaps students know best because grammar and spelling rank low on teachers' priorities when reviewing their students' work (15 percent and 6 percent, respectively). One-quarter (25 percent) of teachers who taught a subject other than English do not penalize their students for incorrect spelling and grammar. So what do teachers really care about? Meaning and comprehension top the list (64 percent). And a majority (88 percent) of teachers are irked by improper use of basic words (e.g. their, there and they're). A strong majority of teachers (75 percent) are bothered by students using popular slang or text speak in their schoolwork.

Survey methodology
All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 801 teachers. Fieldwork was undertaken August 4-8, 2017. The survey was carried out online. Respondents range from teachers at elementary schools through postgraduate schools.

I'm surprised most of the knobs they give teaching jobs to these days even know what grammar is.