@wwin wrote:
People of reasonable ability can be successful even with extensive narratives as long as they put in the extra effort to check their report before submitting
The key is your statement above, with which I totally agree. No, not all people have the same level of ability as others--whether it's in writing or in other things. But recognizing that one faces challenges in a particular area, and taking care to double check details in those areas, is crucial. Your post highlights the importance of proofreading narratives in order to ensure they're as accurate as possible. Not perfect, but the best they can be. I imagine that not all shoppers are as conscientious as you are. (I can't type very well, and make a lot of typos, so I make sure I proofread my reports with a fine-tooth comb to catch typos.)
Unfortunately, when people are careless with their social-media postings, nobody can tell whether that's from just being in a hurry, not caring if their grammar is correct, trusting spell-check, not being a good typist, or--in truth--from really not knowing what's correct.
In the absence of context, people judge based on what they see in front of them. Everybody does it. "We" (collectively) jump all over, for example, a shopper who screws up an observation or a timing, or messes up something else other than grammar. But, if "we" make any comment (even light heartedly) about a poster's grammar, people get so offended. Using incorrect grammar in a report is no different than screwing up any other aspect of a shop. Writing a narrative with correct grammar and spelling is as important as making sure we make all of the required observations, get our timings correct, take the necessary photos, etc. It's part of the job requirements; I think most, or all, MSCs state to use correct spelling and grammar in narratives.
Having said all that, I "get it" about not correcting people's grammar in posts here. But one wonders sometimes if those posts reflect the grammar used in reports. When people come on here and whine that they "did everything exactly right," but their reports were rejected, could it be that their reports were so poorly written that light editing couldn't fix them, and the MSC simply couldn't send them to the clients? As far as I can tell, MSC editors aren't supposed to function solely as copy editors; they're also reviewing reports for many other things.
(And, yes, there may be typos in this--since I don't proof my posts the way I proof my reports!
)
I learn something new every day, but not everyday!
I've learned to never trust spell-check or my phone's auto-fill feature.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/24/2016 04:27PM by BirdyC.