03 March 2006

A pedant writes again...

From The Guardian (here):
"Exam body declares war on greengrocer's apostrophe

Exams chiefs have unveiled plans to stop pupils getting good GCSE grades if they use apostrophes incorrectly or put commas in the wrong place.
The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority this week opened a consultation on plans for new "functional literacy" tests - sparking fresh debate over the importance of grammar, and the wisdom of waging war on the greengrocer's apostrophe...
Lynne Truss, author of the bestselling book Eats, Shoots and Leaves, told the Times Educational Supplement that she was "very happy" with the QCA's reforms.
"Correct punctuation and spelling does have a bearing on people's success in life. So in a way it is not fair to tell pupils it is OK to make mistakes in exams."

Er, should that not be "correct punctuation and spelling do have a bearing..."?

No comments: