Why do human beings write? Well, for starters, the development of writing was a vital element in creating civilized life, some 5,000 years ago somewhere in the Euphrates valley (modern Iraq). Writing expanded communication and gave direction to public and economic life. Writing enables the memory of the individual and the culture to be preserved, since it provides records of events. Inspired writing (literature) fires the imagination, taking the individual reader into the true realms of the intellect and the power of thought (La Pensée)

Many students today have a problem with writing. There is something of a deficiency of writing skills in specific sectors, especially among science students. For decades, the major complaint from the business world upon hiring technical graduates has been their poor writing skills. Good writers are one of the rarest resources in the press today, both nationally and internationally; similarly for good speakers on radio and TV. The Alistair Cooks of this world, with their precision and elegance, are indeed a rare commodity! But, as any good language teacher will tell you, writing ability can be improved. The slow and dull can be trained to become sharp and fluent, the sharp and fluent in turn can, through the proverbial perspiration, reach inspiration!

The computer and the mobile phone, fantastic tools of modern living, are the worst offenders: students and other young people sit at their machines e-mailing and messaging texts without a proof-reading or spell-check, or even giving much thought to what is being sent. The errors are then circulated and repeated by others until finally many, many Internauts become ?illiterate?, replacing proper English with Internet slang. The SMS, however convenient, cannot replace letter writing. How long since you have written a longhand letter to a friend? Such a letter conveys your mood and part of yourself that the SMS simply cannot do. An excellent compromise is the personal circular letter on Word, sent by e-mail to friends and acquaintances at Christmas time.

Further problems occur with television and advertising. Television deprives students of reading time. Without exposure to great literature (not Harry Potter!!), students have no idea what a literate phrase is supposed to look like. However, they are quite able to quote verbatim from last week?s episode of Friends, 24-HOURS or Desperate Housewives!Advertising is also an issue; companies like to make up words. Many meaningless and misspelled words are becoming household names through advertising.

Teachers need to move away from the multiple-choice tests and have students write more essays. The CPE should include a proper section on writing, with the hope that this measure will bring teachers to emphasize writing at the crucial formative years of the primary. Lifestyles and attitudes must change. People need to return to reading books AS WELL AS watching television, communicating through the written letter and proper conversation AS WELL AS using mobiles and computers.

Students must recognize the need to write well and seek to acquire the proper skills. They must actively practice good writing on their own, whether it is electronic or longhand, for school, business or pleasure. The business world and political establishment must recognize the value of a literate culture and reward those who actively participate in it. Excellent mastery of English and French, both spoken and written, preferably with command of another UN language, is a huge advantage on the international scene, a scene on to which many more Mauritians aspire to roam!

Dr. Michael ATCHIA [email protected] http://www.michael-atchia.info