Fòram na Gàidhlig

Edit by GunChleoc: This post was split from aonother thread. I think it makes an important point, so please do discuss

faoileag wrote: This is for everyone : if you spot a possible mistake (very few native-speakers on here and even they make slips and typos etc ), by all means point it out / query it / suggest corrections, but keep the tone light, friendly and helpful. We don't want to discourage anyone at all from posting. ALL posts welcome, and all practice useful .

Not everything will automatically get corrected, as we are all volunteeers on here - it will depend on who sees things and who has time.

To be honest, this is one reason why I don't post here often (the other being I don't appreciate the condenscension I've gotten from certain people here), and when I do I avoid using Gaelic! I have little interest in my posts beng nitpicked or having someone correct me according to their own preferences (then have two or three others debate it or correct the previous person). That has never really helped me learn anything, in Gaelic or any other language I've studied. It only makes me more anxious about using the language. I figure out mistakes on my own eventually from reading Gaelic and if I have a specific question I can ask people I trust to give me a good answer or look it up. As far as I'm concerned, if yu can understand what I wrote or said, leave it be. You know, broken Gaelic is better and all that, right?

Maybe beginners want that, but Ireally don't. I just would like to be able to use Gaelic without feeling like everything I write and say has to be examed and proofread by people who may or may not be right in correcting me. And I doubt I'm alone in that, just the only one bold enough to say it.

Valid point, Ceid.

Especially as it's easy in written posts to hit the wrong tone innocently when trying to be helpful etc, or to take offence where none was intended.

Some people post specifically hoping for or even expecting corrections, others are terrified they'll get torn apart if it's not perfect, others are irritated if non-fluent posters ask questions based on possible mistakes in their posts.

Maybe it would be useful if people put a line in their signature (as some do) - "please correct!" or "Please don't correct unless I ask!", or something ????

I personally found any correction very helpful, but I also understand that you can feel intimidated by it - I once had a language teacher who interrupted us immediately at the slightest grammar mistake - needless to say that I never learned to speak that language properly.

So, I think Faoileag has a good idea there. I have created a new profile field where you can select if you wish yor gramar corrected. Go here: http://www.foramnagaidhlig.net/foram/uc ... ofile_info and pick it on the bottom. You can already see my choice in my profile

Another problem is that most of the people around here are either not native speakers, or have had no formal training in grammar. And then of course we have the different dialects who do things differently...