Discussion Activity: Professionalism and Grammar

Ask students to break into small groups of 3-4 members.

Hand out the three printed copies of the cover letters to each group. Instruct students to choose, based on these letters alone, which of the three candidates will be given an interview.

Often, there will be disagreement. Most groups will immediately disqualify the candidate with little information and a poorly constructed letter, but often groups are split on whether the candidate with more information or the candidate with better professional presentation should get the job. I discuss how there is not necessarily a right answer but that we need to be aware the different audiences will judge using different standards and expectations.

Follow up the in-class discussion with a brief overview of the following articles:
“I Won’t Hire People Who Use Poor Grammar” by Kyle Wiens
“Grammar as a Matter of Fashion” by John McWhorter

Open up a class discussion about the different perspectives of McWhorter and Wiens. In my experience, students often quickly go to the ethical ramifications of Wiens’ position, namely how it might discriminate against applicants based on race, class, and geographical background. Several students usually also note that Wiens is ultimately in control of his own company and can make the rules. These articles tend to lead to a complex discussion of the ethics of grammatical judgment.

If I have a longer class, I may add an in-class writing component asking students for their point of view on using grammar as a way to judge job applicants. I have also used these articles as the writing prompt for an informal writing submitted online to make sure that the conversation sparks reflection beyond the brief classroom discussion.