English literature GCSE

I left school in 1968 with just one GCE, English Literature.


I am now retired after a very full and interesting career in Engineering!

I achieved a good grade 'O' level GCE and have always enjoyed reading fiction.


However I do not understand any of Shakespeare's works, half of his words are obsolete and the other half have changed their meanings! I don't 'get' poetry either, if someone has something to say then say it, use the whole page, don't cram the thought into a fixed format! I skip over florid writing,


I didn't see the point of analysing a piece of literature to death. Perhaps some authors 'engineer' a story according to these 'rules' of literature but many others just write.


When I was at school we studied 'The History of Mr Polly' in detail. The whole class hated it. I took it home and read it all as a novel and I actually enjoyed it! All that analysis killed our interest in reading.


As speakers of English we are fortunate in having an extensive and varied literature which is strongly embedded within our culture and if we are to engage with that culture it is important that we receive some education about those works that are generally considered significant. The same is true of History and Geography too.

Hmm...at school there is a difference between English Language and English Literature for good reason, English Language should introduce you into the skills of writing clearly and understanding other's writing. English Literature if well taught (maybe I was particularly lucky) introduces you to other people's views and impressions of how human society works. And how to tell a good story to those with a different background to yours.


All the above skills are vital for engineering teams (although of course individual engineers may survive without one or more of them). Engineering is about meeting society's needs through the application of science, therefore an understanding of that society and the ability to effectively tell a story to explain an engineering solution to a non-engineer (or even an engineer form a different discipline) are vital if we're going to deliver a useful service and, incidentally, get paid for it!


I'd actually disagree with the idea above (can't see the exact wording while writing this so apologies if I'm misquoting!) that human survival skills are hunting, heat, shelter etc - there's one more which is unique and essential to humans and is the reason we are "successful", and that is communicating with and understanding others. Even, say, Ray Mears relies on the collective understanding and appreciation of other human knowledge and "stories" for his field survival skills.


No school subject is essential for engineering (no, not even maths*), but every additional subject can enrich our value as engineers i.e. making us an effective part of a hugely diverse but inter-dependent society. 


Cheers,


Andy


* I did actually turn my calculator on at the weekend, rather surprised the batteries were still live! This was because I'm in the middle of building yet another guitar and needed to calculate the string spacing. Nothing to do with the day job.

The Pen is mightier than the Sword (if inferior steel is used ?) . Although for many of my generation their “pens” were the tools of their trade, the File, the Pliers, the Welding Torch, the Brummagem Screwdriver etc.  As a simplistic observation, one of the most obvious differences between the professional engineer and the professional craftsperson, is their powers of explanation and persuasion. I like to see these as just different “intelligences” or talents, but academic advancement in most fields rewards expression through language, rather than through artefacts. In engineering we also potentially have the language of mathematics to deploy, when appropriate.  Somebody kicked off a thread about Electricians which went AWOL, but it is interesting to observe how many, who perhaps didn’t excel in persuasion as judged by an examination at the age of 16, became leaders. I met one with a Nobel Prize to his name a few years ago!   

If the education system cannot ensure fluency in the English Language for all but the most challenged of students in over ten years, then something is badly wrong. Whether passing a GCSE exam in either language or literature demonstrates capability, or just repetition by someone coached to within an inch of their lives to win the exam “competition”, I’ll not pursue that just now - I need to revise?   
   

Andy Millar:

English Literature if well taught (maybe I was particularly lucky) introduces you to other people's views and impressions of how human society works.

• literal and inferential comprehension:

• critical reading:

• evaluation of a writer’s choice of vocabulary, grammatical and structural features:

• comparing texts:

• producing clear and coherent text:

• accurate Standard English:

I think there is a difficult balance to be struck whenever creative works are analysed whether that be literature, music or engineering design. Over-analysis kills creativity and dissuades those that have it to use their skills. Teach 'creative writing' or 'design' and we get plenty of compliant output, but no novelty.