Oxford University has told staff not to use common phrases such as “learn the ropes” or “find your feet” over fears they confuse foreign students, sparking concern from free speech campaigners at the new scheme of language policing. The Sun has the story.
The seat of learning’s official style guide also warns against using the term “blindspots”.
And it suggests words such as “spokesman”, “chairwoman” and “mankind” should be swapped for gender-neutral alternatives including “spokesperson”, “chair” and “humankind”.
The guide, which plays a role in advising Oxford’s academics on inclusive language choices, warns that common sayings “may not be familiar to international readers or may use stereotypes”.
The updated advice adds that “deprived” students should be described as “lower income” or having experienced “socioeconomic disadvantage”.
It says “learn the ropes” could be “learn how to do that”, “blindspots” could be “gaps in knowledge”, and someone “finding their feet” could be “getting used to their new environment”.
Staff should also use “they/them” rather than alternating between “he” and “she”.
Lord Young, of the Free Speech Union, said: “Surely, one of the reasons international students come to Oxford is so that they can immerse themselves in our culture and master colloquial English.
“What’s next? Is Oxford going to insist all lectures have to be in Esperanto?”
Worth reading in full.
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I had not realised Oxford students’ intellectual standards had dropped so far.
Not as low as the standards of the clowns who run the place
Students should have to adapt to studying in a different country, and learning the local words and phrases. I would inagine these are all the things that make it interesting studying abroad. To get the education, and the cultural experience. Such as it is.
Exactly. One of the things I love about our language are the figures of speech and one of the great pleasures of my life has been to reach a near native level of fluency in Italian including using modi di dire appropriately. These patronising tossers want to remove that pleasure from non native speakers. Part of erasing our culture.
Very sensible.
Presumably they (he or she) will also be discouraged from describing how difficult it would be to find Guy Gibson’s dog in a woodpile.
What do they want staff to do, behave like a stereotypical British tourist i.e. talk slowly, loudly and point?
Esperanto?
No. Mandarin or Arabic.