<p>Is it bad if there are grammar mistakes in a letter of recommendation for a summer science/math program?</p>
<p>My math teacher does not have great English, but he wrote a very good letter of recommendation for me in content - the only problem is his grammar. However, you can still understand the meaning he is trying to convey.</p>
<p>Should I keep this letter of recommendation to use, or should I get another one that might not be so great in content, but with proper grammar?</p>
<p>Since it’s math, I’d go for the more enthusiastic letter. For the most part, it’s easy to distinguish between a writer who uses English as a second language and a writer who’s an ill-educated native speaker. If this were an English teacher, I might take the opposite point of view.</p>
<p>I’m a junior now and my school wants us to ask our teachers for recs by the end of 3rd quarter. My Chinese teacher really likes me and I know that she would have nothing but good things to say, but her English is terrible. She is totally understandable in conversation, but her poor grammar makes it difficult to comprehend her writing. Do you think I should ask her for a rec and if I do, do I need to do anything about the fact that it’s practically a foreign language?</p>
<p>zxch555 - Talk with your counselor about this one. There is every chance that the Chinese teacher has someone else proof-read her writing for things like this.</p>
<p>hffighter, use the great letter. The content of the letter will help you and someone reading the letter will understand the ESL challenge for your teacher.</p>
<p>“For the most part, it’s easy to distinguish between a writer who uses English as a second language and a writer who’s an ill-educated native speaker.”</p>
<p>Yes, indeed; the ESL writer will probably use better grammar, avoiding mistakes like “Jane gave the sandwiches to Tommy and I” and “Jane thinks me visiting Tommy would be fun” and “Jane looked at Tommy as if he was a monster.”</p>