Here we go again. Is it the editor? the reporter? or the school itself?In Thursday's edition of the P & C two more schools are added to CCSD Superintendent McGinley's list of those desiring to be "partial magnets." [See 2 More Schools Seeking to Operate like Magnets.] According to the Courrege-written article, Chicora Elementary in North Charleston and Haut Gap Middle on Johns Island are hoping to get on the goodie list.
Chicora Elementary wishes "to offer a communication theme. Students would publish a newspaper and magazine, create a Web site, host a daily TV news program and participate in project-based learning." We could ask why Chicora must be a magnet in order to do this, but let it pass.
"Haut Gap Middle plans to develop three academic tracts: science, humanities and foreign language. Students would have the opportunity to earn up to five high school credits."
Tracts? Tracts?
Well, we could assume that each of the three will be given a section of land on Johns Island to farm--using science, humanities, and foreign language methods (actually, Spanish methods might work quite well there). You know, sort of like the Watson Hill tract.
Or, we could assume that the Oxford Movement has come alive on Johns Island and Tractarianism will rule each sector, although perhaps administrators have another Common Sense in mind instead. We'll wait with bated breath on that one.
It seems so unlikely that the Roman Catholic Church has taken over Johns Island that we can safely assume that these tracts will not concern the Mass, especially since it's not even Lent.
Let's be generous. Someone's handwriting was difficult to read. Someone was a poor typist (I sympathize!). The copy editor forgot to look at the article.
Let us all hope that Haut Gap, Courrege, and the editors of the P & C actually know the difference between a "tract" and a "track"!
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1 comment:
Thanks for the reality check every now and then. We need more teachers and adults in general to help the rest of us clean up our misuse of our language if only for better communication. Without knowing where the mistakes are and how to correct them we can only expect the next generation will be less understood than this one. Now I don't feel like a dork when I make corrections out loud for the misuse of pronouns by screenwriters and new anchors on the tube. I do it in front of kids who naturally repeat what they hear. That ought to be worth a few more points when they take the SAT. They aren't getting that from the media or in school.
Tract vs. track! I for one needed to know that, too.
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