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Using correct English when applying for a job, or when writing official materials, is essential. However, every now and then some words, considered part of the informal language, tend to be included in such official work. With an aim of stopping some bad language habits, an academic school in London has actually banned several words.
From now on, words such as “innit”, “bare”, “extra” and the phrases “you woz” and “we woz” are banned at the Croydon school, an institution which aims to its students to “express themselves confidently and appropriately,” as Harris Academy Upper Norwood explained. He added:
“I think this is a very good idea. Speaking slang is fine in a social setting but as school should be a professional, educational environment and if part of that means banning slang than that’s fine by me.
“Too often I see young people going into job interviews or writing cover letters without being able to use correct English. Any attempts to change that should be encouraged.”
“No one is saying slang is bad, but simply that it shouldn’t be the only way that one is capable of communicating,” also mentioned Harris.
Beginning sentences with ‘basically’, or ending them with ‘yeah’ is also forbidden from now on in this school. This may sound like a harsh method, but, as many people nowadays overuse various words (e.g. “like”), this could be a method that could lead to the use of correct English in official contexts.
What do you think of this measure?
