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From: duncan@geppetto.ctt.bellcore.com (Scott Duncan)
Newsgroups: soc.college,comp.edu
Subject: Re: Student and Course Integrity
Message-ID: <13223@bellcore.bellcore.com>
Date: 6 Jan 89 11:18:48 GMT
References: <1217.23C35B05@rubbs.FIDONET.ORG> <13206@bellcore.bellcore.com> <9264@ut-emx.UUCP>
Sender: news@bellcore.bellcore.com
Reply-To: duncan@ctt.bellcore.com (Scott Duncan)
Organization: Computer Technology Transfer, Bellcore
Lines: 33

In article <9264@ut-emx.UUCP> nather@ut-emx.UUCP (Ed Nather) writes:
>In article <13206@bellcore.bellcore.com>, duncan@geppetto.ctt.bellcore.com (Scott Duncan) writes:
>> communication skills are VERY IMPORTANT anymore. 
>
>You can say "... NOT very important any more"; is that what you meant, and
>just left out the "not?"  Or you can say "...are very important these days"
>or "...now" but not as you phrased it.

Yes...sigh.  I've had to work on other than my own workstation since the be-
ginning of the year and more than the usual typos are happening.  In this case
a whole line got lost in the process -- the display was messed up and not show-
ing what was, apparently in the text buffer.  My apologies for that terrible
example of English!  (By the way, I meant to say "are VERY IMPORTANT and,
especially in technical fields, cannot be ignored anymore."  But I don't think
you could even imagine that from what got posted.  Again, I'm very sorry...)

>I agree it's useful to be able to communicate.  But in this day and age
>of "reading skills" and "writing skills" and "thinking skills" I would
>phrase the thought without the use of the idiotword "skills."
>
>Try expunging it -- and the shallow thoughts it represents -- from your
>vocabulary.  You'll like it.

On the other hand, since I'm not teaching on a regular basis these days,
perhaps the word 'skills' has taken on a really bad meaning of which I'm
unaware.  I did not think its use would condemn my thoughts on communication
with others (which I did not express in any detail) so completely.  Do others
active in teaching feel this word suggests shallow thoughts?

Speaking only for myself, of course, I am...
Scott P. Duncan (duncan@ctt.bellcore.com OR ...!bellcore!ctt!duncan)
                (Bellcore, 444 Hoes Lane  RRC 1H-210, Piscataway, NJ  08854)
                (201-699-3910 (w)   201-463-3683 (h))