In responding to my instructional design team, one of which is an English major and a stickler for proper English and grammar, I would use the personalization principle itself to win him/her over. Just because you are personalizing instruction, doesn't mean proper English is not being used. It's vital to understand your audience before you decide how personalized you want to get, and since one member of the design team is a "stickler", it would be important not to get too personalized. However, when working with less experienced learners, such as teens or younger kids, you may want to consider personalizing even further. Clark and Mayer, (2008) explain that there are several reasons why a personalized approach is more effective than a formal tone, in particular "according to cognitive theories of learning, humans strive to make sense of presented material by applying appropriate cognitive processes" (pg. 184). When delivering instruction it is important to get the brain ready for learning, and it appears that a personalized approach causes the learner to think more deeply about the information being presented. In addition, students learn better when the speakers voice is human and polite. I'm sure even the English teacher would agree that kindness wins out over directness, especially with inexperienced learners. Finally, using an online coach, better known as a pedagogical agent, "produced up to 48% more solutions in transfer tests". (Clark and Mayer, 2008, p. 194). Imagine your students performing up to 48% better just by incorporating an on-screen coach. Of course, the coach will need to use personalization, talk in a human voice, and use polite speech. All-in-all, we must consider the fact that human are social beings, and how we communicate with them is crucial to understanding.
Clark, R. C., & Mayer, R. E. (2008). E-learning and the science of instruction, 2nd edition. Pfeiffer: San Francisco, CA
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