The Internet these days is no longer an optional tool for communication – it has become, for millions of people the world over, a necessary form of communication.
But its widespread use has spawned language that is totally different from what has been used by our parents and grandparents.
David Crystal, in Thorne (2003) suggests that 'the language of the Web is under no central control, does not respect national boundaries, and thus spawns new communicative genres.'
What was once unacceptable is now embraced by Internet users worldwide.
New terms have evolved and are still evolving, and lexicographers can hardly keep up. There's 'click through', 'apps', and 'defrag', and thousands others.
We fear that our kids haven't yet learned standard spelling and yet they are inundated by new terms that have cropped up, confusing them even more.
But even as there is growing use and acceptance of this new jargon, formal English is here to stay, and students still have to spell properly.
The need, then, for a spelling mastery program to be used outside of classroom instruction is obvious.
One of the many spelling software applications available on the market is the popular Ultimate Spelling software, a user-friendly program that provides tests the user can take once he reviews a spelling list he has chosen.
It is important for children to receive feedback, especially when they are studying alone. B.F. Skinner, in his landmark 1968 study, emphasized the 'importance of feedback in instruction, describing its function as shaping and maintaining the learner's appropriate responding' (Jaehnig & Miller, 2007).
This feedback comes in the form of a reminder of the correct spelling in the Ultimate Spelling software. As soon as the child masters a particular word, this word is then deleted from his spelling list, giving him the opportunity to learn even more new words.
Unlike traditional spelling drills in the classroom where the same word list is given to the students over and over again until everyone in class has mastered it, the spelling mastery program you should choose for the home should be flexible and customizable.
The beauty of having one's own spelling mastery program is that the child can return to particularly problematic words whenever he wants to.
When he becomes comfortable with his degree of mastery, he will be more confident in using the new words he has learned, making it easier for him to apply his new knowledge in actual writing exercises.
Studying spelling at home with the use of a computer also eliminates the need to hire expensive tutors, and if your child also has problems relating with adults, which is sometimes the case with kids who perform poorly in class, a spelling mastery program then becomes the perfect alternative.
References:
Thorne, S L 2003, 'Language and the Internet', Language, Learning & Technology, vol. 7, no. 2, p. 24.
Jaehnig, W & Miller, M L 2007, 'Feedback types in programmed instruction: A systematic review', The Psychological Record, vol. 57, no. 2, p. 219.