To avoid more English professors, I interviewed a Doctor

Since I did not want to overburden the English department, and Professor Tolar Burton told us we could interview someone in our field, I went with my pre-med option and interviewed a local doctor. His take on writing was interesting because he said his most important writing was all done before he graduated. Some doctors write for journals where writing quality must be high, but his publications were mostly community education, so he feels he has to make alterations to his writings. The doctor said at first it was interesting because he had to write at a lower level than he was accustomed to in medical school. In his daily activities, he says he does not write very often. He mostly writes very short prescriptions and occasional letters to insurance companies. After we had been talking for a while, he remembered his dictation. Because he does not type it himself, he overlooks that aspect often. Although he only records the words in an understandable way, it is integral that it is clear because he may forget something important about the patient between visits, and if he ever was taken to court he would need the records to be properly written. The biggest surprise was that he feels that writing was not very important to his career, at least not on the everyday level.

Grammar is Key

I interviewed a professor in the French department. He stressed that the importance of grammar within a French major, as well as with any foreign language, is paramount. Grammar is the basic component and without mastering this aspect, the student can’t write properly or fully express their ideas. As we saw in Chapter 3 of our grammar books, French verbs have more than seventy different forms to express variations in person, number, tense and mood, as well as several additional tenses that are not used in the English language. The professor explained that French derived from Latin and that this is why French grammar is more complex than that of English.

In regards to writing within the French major, there are firm guidelines to follow. The writing is expected to be clear and concise and always include an Introduction, Body and Conclusion. The professor reiterated that grammar is the key to writing in French and concluded by saying that a student never looses points for proper grammar usage.

Writing in Spanish

I interviewed two professors in the Spanish department, and both of them gave me very similar answers. They both stressed that in a field that includes second language learners, professional training prohibits one from passing judgment on the errors that such students make in their work. With respect to native speakers in the Spanish major, there is no “correctness,” as Spanish speakers from different regions use different dialects, and the “mistakes” they make may be characteristic of the Spanish they learned while growing up.
As for a preferred writing style, professor 1 valued writing that communicates effectively and appropriately for its purpose, regardless of “proper” writing techniques. Professor 2 noted each student in the Spanish major speaks and writes at a different level, and placed emphasis on a student’s own recognition of repeated errors versus a professor continuously trying to correct the student.

A writer's views on grammar

I interviewed a teacher in the Writing department. She said that the way a person writes absolutely affects his or her influence and impact. The quality of writing specifically affects whether people take the writer seriously or not. Proper grammar and sentence structure provides a lot of automatic credibility. For students and other writers, correctness in writing is important because the reader must be able to read the piece in the way that the author meant it. Without knowing the rules of grammar, the writer cannot selectively and thoughtfully bend or break those rules in order to get the desired affect or reader reaction. The most desirable writing style for the field of fiction writing is one in which creativity plays a strong role. However, the diversity of writing styles in literature is such that there is no one preferred style of writing. I found Ms. B’s attitude toward students’ written grammar very interesting. She said that even though she understands that students receive very limited and inadequate grammar instruction and even though she sympathizes with the students, she still instinctively views bad grammar in a paper as a sign of lack of commitment or focus on the work. She added that although she can become very frustrated with the students who use bad grammar, she tries to be receptive and helpful to those that seek to improve.

"Oh, dude! It's important!"

The professor that I interviewed in the English department believes that language has incredible power in the field. She is convinced that a person who is a shabby writer is much less likely to persuade their audience, whether it’s in the classroom or professional world. When asked about the importance of correctness in writing, she exclaimed, “Oh, dude! It’s important!” Once again the issue of belief, authority, and trust rests on one’s command of grammar. She said that power in writing comes when one can knowledgably break the rules. In the English department, there is not any particular style of writing that is most desirable. The most important thing is versatility and a tremendous sense of flexibility. In her opinion, the most impressive skill in student writing is the ability to support ideas with very precise detail economically. This is important in both literary analysis and fiction writing. In essence, a good understanding of the rules of language is crucial for English majors.

The Importance of Being Grammatical

I interviewed a professor from the English Department. Obviously in the field of English and literature, grammar is essential. The professor I interviewed acknowledged this to be the case as well. Yet she felt grammar in her profession was a rudimentary necessity. She spoke about the need to submit work samples prior to graduate school. She explored the idea that in this work sample, a person literally becomes his or her work. She contemplated the power or loss of power a person could experience in this one piece of work. Yet grammatical correctness does not create an excellent writer. She also believes a successful writer explores complex ideas through clarity and sophistication. To have the language and skills at one's disposal makes the complexity of thought fall onto the page in written form. It seems quite accurate when she mentioned in her profession, intellect and writing are direct correlations. The power of writing in English professions is a necessity.

On a lighter note, the professor also told a personal story. When she was in high school she dated someone who had left for college. Over the year the two of them had a correspondence through letters. Yet when summer came around, she broke up with him. The reason being, his grammar and writing skills were too bothersome to the professor. His errors and lack of rudimentary writing skills ended their relationship. Writing must be quite powerful because the professor even stated, "He was very cute too, but I just couldn't do it."

I interviewed a History Professor

I interviewed a Professor in the History Department that I’ve had several history classes with, and written several papers for. He has also written several books so it was interesting to get his opinion on how important grammar is to him and in the field of history. He believes that writing correctness is very important both for students and those working in the field of history. He did however state that in history the emphasis is more on research and documentation, but that it’s impossible to give a well organized professional looking argument if one doesn’t use correct grammar. He says that students that use correct sentence and paragraph format, as well as proper use of commas and semicolons are best able to present a well organized professional paper.

I interviewed a professor in the botany department, and he felt that the way a person writes definitely affects their influence and impacts. If you can't write effectively then you can't communicate effectively, and you leave the reader feeling as though you don't have command of the subject matter, and why bother reading it? As far as the most desirable writing style goes, he thought that just about anything works as long as it is consistent! That was a point that he stressed over and over. What impressed him most in students writing is when a paper keeps you interested even when it is a subject that you are generally uninterested in or don't agree with. Along with this is a definite beginning as well as having a precise recap at the end without repeating themselves constantly throughout the paper. One thing he really doesn't like is when a student repeats themselves, but changes what they say just a little so it sounds different. That is just taking up space to fill a page requirement, and it is not the point of the assignment. He also thought it is important that a person can follow rules when writing a paper, such as giving his students a specific outline for how to write a paper. This can be very important, especially in a scientific field, because if you want to publish a paper in a journal, you must be able to put it in the format that they want exactly or they won't accept it. He also thought it was important to be able to cite a reference properly, especially within a sentence, and how to list your citations. He couldn't stress consistency enough!