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Excellent.nightmare69 wrote:I understand and when I'm writing my reports at school I am mindful of my grammar. I don't really worry to much about it on a forum typing on my iPhone. I am working on improving my writing skills and I will be taking a couple of courses on the subject.
Excaliber wrote:The folks here are on your side and are giving good advice, even though it may not always be what you want to hear. Believe me when I say that it's a lot easier to learn these things the easy way on the Forum than it is to do it the hard way in the school of hard knocks.nightmare69 wrote:I'm on my phone, sue me. When I go for my associates degree in criminal justice I will have to take an English class.
I would counsel you to take grammar and spelling seriously.
You can get by with sloppy grammar and spelling as an entry level LEO, but you'll have lots of trouble making rank or getting an investigative assignment if your lieutenants and captains find reading your reports painful and if somebody has to edit the ones that will go to court to keep the agency from being embarrassed. Also, getting cross examined by a skilled attorney on a poorly written report is an experience you won't soon forget.
The future for the folks that leave these skills undeveloped is 25 years of shift work in a patrol car. I know that sounds exciting now, but trust me when I tell you that after 5 to 7 years of that, you won't be a happy camper looking forward to another 18 to 20 years of doing the same thing at the bottom of the career ladder dealing with the dirtiest jobs and the dirtiest people in and year out while your friends are getting stripes, gold badges, and bars on their uniforms.
That's not unique to law enforcement either. In the civilian world, which you will eventually return to, he who can write is a prized commodity. More and more companies are requiring writing samples during the interview process. In one company I've done quite a bit of work with, entry level job candidates for a consulting position are given a situation and 90 minutes to write a several page report on it in MS Word on a computer. If it doesn't meet very high standards for organization, grammar, spelling, and punctuation, it doesn't matter what else is on the resume - he's toast for a position that would have paid him in the six figures plus bonus and full benefits to start - if he could write.
It's something to think about.
Just don't focus your writing skills on "fiction" like some police reports border on.nightmare69 wrote:I understand and when I'm writing my reports at school I am mindful of my grammar. I don't really worry to much about it on a forum typing on my iPhone. I am working on improving my writing skills and I will be taking a couple of courses on the subject.
I understand this and can be the same way sometimes. But I strongly advise you to develop the habit now of always using your best grammar and spelling. Making it a habit will make you a better writer, and you will be surprised how important that will turn out to be. You will get sloppy at some point in the future, and it is most likely to happen when you think the writing will not make a difference or be important in the future. And I can almost guarantee that when it does, you will find yourself on the stand trying to explain to a defense attorney and jury what you meant as opposed to what you actually had written. I have seen officers made to appear foolish on the stand over their reports and have it cost them a trial because the jury would not believe that they were competent. Society is getting more casual about grammar but your may find some much older (or at least old fashioned) people on the jury.nightmare69 wrote:I understand and when I'm writing my reports at school I am mindful of my grammar. I don't really worry to much about it on a forum typing on my iPhone. I am working on improving my writing skills and I will be taking a couple of courses on the subject.
srothstein wrote:I understand this and can be the same way sometimes. But I strongly advise you to develop the habit now of always using your best grammar and spelling. Making it a habit will make you a better writer, and you will be surprised how important that will turn out to be. You will get sloppy at some point in the future, and it is most likely to happen when you think the writing will not make a difference or be important in the future. And I can almost guarantee that when it does, you will find yourself on the stand trying to explain to a defense attorney and jury what you meant as opposed to what you actually had written. I have seen officers made to appear foolish on the stand over their reports and have it cost them a trial because the jury would not believe that they were competent. Society is getting more casual about grammar but your may find some much older (or at least old fashioned) people on the jury.nightmare69 wrote:I understand and when I'm writing my reports at school I am mindful of my grammar. I don't really worry to much about it on a forum typing on my iPhone. I am working on improving my writing skills and I will be taking a couple of courses on the subject.
And, I know that grammar police can be annoying sometimes but it also has another important lesson for you. As a police officer, you need to develop a very thick skin and not let minor annoyances get to you. There will always be people out there that will try to get your goat and make you do or say something stupid that they can videotape and post on YouTube (before complaining to you boss or suing you). And some of these posts can be pretty funny if you don't let it get to you.
I had that same thought.srothstein wrote:And, I know that grammar police can be annoying sometimes but it also has another important lesson for you. As a police officer, you need to develop a very thick skin and not let minor annoyances get to you. There will always be people out there that will try to get your goat and make you do or say something stupid that they can videotape and post on YouTube (before complaining to you boss or suing you). And some of these posts can be pretty funny if you don't let it get to you.
srothstein wrote:But I strongly advise you to develop the habit now of always using your best grammar and spelling. Making it a habit will make you a better writer, and you will be surprised how important that will turn out to be. You will get sloppy at some point in the future, and it is most likely to happen when you think the writing will not make a difference or be important in the future.
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/8655 ... tml?pg=allHoover suggests, and I have to agree, “good grammar is a predictor of professional success” and “grammar skills may indicate several valuable traits.”
Hopefully not a spelling bee!!Jumping Frog wrote:Since the whole grammar issue has now been well and thoroughly beaten, let's get back to the title subject. What are you facing in class this week?
Keith you made me break my promise to nightmare69.Keith B wrote:Hopefully not a spelling bee!!Jumping Frog wrote:Since the whole grammar issue has now been well and thoroughly beaten, let's get back to the title subject. What are you facing in class this week?
Keith B wrote:Hopefully not a spelling bee!!Jumping Frog wrote:Since the whole grammar issue has now been well and thoroughly beaten, let's get back to the title subject. What are you facing in class this week?
That is not a grammar issue, but one of how poorly I type, a separate skill discussion for another thread.mojo84 wrote:srothstein wrote:Society is getting more casual about grammar but your may find some much older (or at least old fashioned) people on the jury.