Though it consists of merely six letters, one of the most straightforward words in the English language is C-H-A-N-G-E.  Yet two prominent groups see a need for further simplification of this term.

During the Scripps National Spelling Bee, four protesters passed along their message: “Enuf is enuf. Enough is too much.”

The group, representing The American Literacy Council (ALC) and the London Spelling Society, confidently stand by their claims. They insist that the English language has too many unreasonable ways of spelling words—more than 425 as it turns out—thus causing thriving illiteracy. An Associated Press article explains:

According to literature distributed by the group, it makes more sense for “fruit” to be spelled as “froot,” “slow” should be “slo,” and “heifer” — a word spelled correctly during the first oral round of the bee Thursday by Texas competitor Ramesh Ghanta — should be “hefer.”

There’s no denying an apparent sensibility to this argument. There are many words that make little sense when it comes to spelling. Simple examples such as dumb, gnat, cough, knit and aisle can baffle those just learning the language. This is one of the many difficulties in mastering English.

Although purposely altering words in a language might seem like an reasonable suggestion, one might as well advocate building a time machine.  Good intentions aside it’s not reasonable to demand that billions of people set aside a lifetime of tradition.

It’s often easy to diagnose problems and identify remedies. The difficult part is finding a realistic approach that is not only affordable but  genuinely attainable. As The Methodology Blog has covered before, forcing others to change is nearly impossible.  Instead, we must find ways to inspire stakeholders to improve.

At Slaughter Development, we focus not on forcing change but empowering employees. We don’t change the language at your business. Instead, we help provide ways for you to flourish in the one you already know! Contact us today to learn more about how we can help.

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