Spell check doesn’t catch everything, especially popular homophones. Misusing whose and who’s, or which and witch, in a simple essay can really make you look uneducated. People don’t have spell check 24/7 either.

There are entire websites devoted to misspellings on protest signs. Do we really want our children mocked like the “Get a brain! Morans” guy?

Asking “should we still teach spelling when we have spell check?” is like asking “Should we still teach math when we have calculators?” Of course we still need to teach spelling and math. We don’t want kids to be totally dependent on devices to do everyday tasks like write a quick note or figure out if they’ve gotten correct change.

As far as “not testing” spelling in favor of creative (or maybe kree8tiv) writing…good luck with that. Yes, creativity is important but it doesn’t matter how creative and lovely a piece of work like a poem or essay is if the readers’ are too busy trying to figure out what the misspelled words are supposed to be. Example: My sister brought a very good essay to me, the subject was child hunger. But she kept spelling “bowl” as “bowel” which makes for a very different sentence. Children clutching empty bowls is a very different image from children clutching empty bowels.

Of course spelling, like math, should still be taught. I can’t stand the idea that we should stop doing anything machines can do for us. Reminds me of the humans in Wall-E who couldn’t even walk anymore because they had machines to carry them everywhere. Ridiculous!

Spelling is actually very different from math and from the structure of language. If you read writings from George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and many other great thinkers in history their works are filled with misspellings. Obviously great spellings skills is not a requirement for great ideas and execution of those ideas.

This one is a no-brainer. Of course spelling should be taught!

Comments This is actually a complicated issue, not as simplistic as it’s presented in this article. That is because language serves life, not the other way around. Spelling changes all the time; that’s why they put out new editions of dictionaries–not just because new words are added but also because spellings change. Girlfriend was once girl-friend. The world is changing very fast, so there is some validity to teaching the language differently. On the other hand, I suspect there’s also a lot of just plain opting out of teaching how to really use language for expression. I believe the world of blogging and social networks is the most to blame for how acceptable poor grammar and spelling is. On this site I read blogs and articles and wince, wince, wince at grammar mistakes. I try to restrain myself from being a grammar cop but it’s hard. I’m pretty sure no one copy edits the articles. So what are kids to follow for models of good writing? Let’s hope they are reading well written books, more than anything else. I think they can differentiate between text-speak and well written English.

JEssica, the great thinkers of their time, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, etc, were spelling CORRECTLY for their time period. English has evolved over the last few hundred years.

I look down a little tiny bit at people with poor spelling (not typos but who actually don’t know how to spell things). Words are also spelled certain ways that may not be apparently phonetic because of the etymology (origin) of the word, which is often really interesting. And I agree rote memorization of anything is rarely that useful. “Systems” and how the pieces work together is what people need to learn to really know something.

and before anyone jumps all on the looking down on people part, I don’t mean underprivileged people who didn’t have access to education, I mean some of my own family members and peers who repeatedly spell things like: tomarrow, sacrafice, and mistake prospective and perspective, reins and reigns, etc….

@Manjari and what about “you´re” instead of “your”

Yes. Spelling should continue to be taught. Just because some people are not good at it, is no reason to stop teaching it. This generation with their text speak is no different than the young people of the twenties and the bee’s knees and 23 Skidoo. Language needs some permanence or it ceases to be a language. Slang comes and goes, and some words fall out of use and some become permanent. However, the whole fabric should not be destroyed and disrespected. I don’t see any reason to outlaw spellcheck, but it is not foolproof and spelling should still be taught. Loose would not be corrected by spellcheck to lose, because it is spelled correctly, it just doesn’t mean the opposite of win.

Julie, I would agree with except for the fact the word would be used twice in the same paper and would be spelled differently. Hence not good spellers.