David Kime [#5]

This seems to be largely a continuation of previous topics, and I can't say that my thoughts have really changed too much. Robertson's video aligns with what I've already described previously, that intelligibility should always be the primary consideration. Is the meaning there? Are their ideas thoughtful or fleshed out, or at the very least, show a sense of engagement? The one teacher perfectly explains that "do" versus "does" has no bearing on reader understanding, and, in the past, that has always been my methodology when approaching papers in general. I would even say that "correct"/"standard" grammar contributes very little when a reader has context. 

Perhaps, more enlightening were some of the student anecdotes of the video, particularly in mind were the Turkish student and the Ecuadorian student. Both students mentioned difference in form and how what an American might consider to be basic formatting and structure seems a bit limiting, confusing, or abrupt. And when I think about it, they are both describing a method that feels quite close to American approaches to creative writing -- stylized punctuation and visual pleasure; showing, not telling. American English itself has many different "ways" of writing alone, and some generally feel more natural to certain individuals, and I don't think that's something that should be overlooked or penalized. Let their voice come through first. 

I will also say that Casanave's article did get me thinking about ways in which we could study cultural differences. Abasi's study cited within the essay goes to great lengths to see the differences in English writing and Persian writing, and having those translations side-by-side is pretty revelatory. 

I was also largely reminded of dialects and mutually intelligible languages. Many dialects are formed out of a sense of community and society, and even though they are within the same language they may seem awkward or strange. We can simply look at American, British, and Australian English to know how true this is -- and those are major dialects. What about South Jutlandic (a dialect spoken by very few people in Jutland of Denmark that is only partially understandable to Danes and partially understandable to Germans)? Or Scots (most English speakers can understand it with patience, but is it actually English?)?

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