DICTIONARIES WITH ‘STINK’ PROFANITY IN OUR CLASSROOMS

The putrid publications are loaded with four-letter words in lines like: “Fu—off you stupid bastard!” “Get the fu— out of here!”, “I wouldn’t fu— with Alfie, if I were you” and “What the fu— do you think you are doing?” Shocking? Well, that’s exactly what your child may have learnt in school yesterday!

During the recent summer vacation, I took up a book bearing the title, A Dictionary of Synonyms and Antonyms, which a form two student had just bought for one hundred and five dollars, to be used in school. Although I had seen the particular dictionary sometime prior (either locally or abroad) I had not really looked at the contents. So I guess the old schoolteacher “bad habit” in me decided to “screen” the dictionary’s contents a bit. My first flick landed me on page 85 of the 400-page book. At my first glance I doubted my eyes. A dictionary, of all books, could not have so many errors. I quickly revisited the front cover to correct my errors. But, I realised that I was only confirming my correctness — and my fears!  I had seen right. It was indeed a dictionary. In a bit of consternation and horror, I turned again to the page of my first encounter and began to correct all the wrongly spelt words. Believe it or not, I found twenty eight errors, only on a single page in a dictionary produced by a reputable (supposedly?) international publisher.

After reviewing the impressive-looking dictionary more extensively, I concluded that the error may not have been in the pages of the book, but in its title. It should have really been called, “A Dictionary of Errors and More Errors.” One could cope with a typo or two, here and there, that may be found in a book (although none is tolerable in a dictionary). But not tonnes of errors in one dictionary or a book that’s on the shelf for sale to students. Some years ago, during my stint on an executive body of quite a prestigious school, I had to draw attention to a significant flaw in an English book which was being fairly widely used at that time. The author of the book seemed to have had a deep dislike for punctuation marks.
The absence of quotation and question marks in particular made reading awkward and confusing. To an extent, errors in textbooks are nothing new, however, there is a level that’s particularly troubling. But you haven’t really heard anything yet!

There are a few other dictionaries that are currently used in schools in this country, which are loaded with raw obscene language; naked profanity. Two of the leading offenders are Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English — the complete guide to written and spoken English and Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. The obscene words are as stink as can be, complete with full sentences providing examples of how they should be used in cussing. Under “C” the big “cu—”  word is there in bold black. But the “C” section is joke, in comparison to the “F” section. There is the big “fu—” word and a whole list of its various forms of usage. “Fu— off” gives the example for the curious, vulnerable school mind: “Fu— off you stupid bastard!” The loathsome list also includes examples such as: “Get the fu— out of here!”, “I wouldn’t fu— with Alfie, if I were you” and “What the fu— do you think you are doing?”

Shocking? Unthinkable? Well, that’s exactly what your child may have learnt in school yesterday! And that’s Longman’s idea of “contemporary written and spoken English” for schoolchildren and Cambridge’s notion of “English for exam success,” as they boldly highlight on the covers of their putrid publications. A dictionary carries tremendous authority in language. In fact, in several classes, it’s the final authority. How can we teach our children from these squalid sewer systems called dictionaries, and then blame them when they cuss like professionals? Perhaps the rampant indiscipline in our schools is partly being influenced by the filth of Cambridge and Longman. We already have enough demons to contend with from cable television, the pornographic industry and the repugnant music/entertainment industry which is overloaded with plagues such as Bounty Killer.

What the police (hats off to them!) did to Bounty Killer at the Savannah on August 14, is what we should do with the junk of Cambridge and Longman, and every piece of garbage of its kind - drag them out of our classrooms and dump them! On a bit of a redeeming note, though, Cambridge and Longman each has a sanitised dictionary copy which can be used in schools. (And this does not, in any way, absolve them of their sins otherwise.) The clean dictionaries are the Cambridge Learner’s Dictionary and Longman’s Active Study Dictionary. Other recommended copies are: Heinemann English Dictionary, Chamber’s School Dictionary, Chambers English School Dictionary, and Collins Gem English Dictionary. Webster’s is also untainted, but it’s basically American. Oxford, although to a limited degree, is also defiled, except for a very simple primary school copy. May every parent and teacher, by godly wisdom, make the best choice for our children.