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Luv 2 Txt MAG
You need to send a quick text to your mom to tell her soccer practice is canceled. In an effort not to get caught, you reach ever so slowly, skillfully, and one-handedly into your backpack. Drawing your bright purple handheld lifeline from the front pocket, you are careful not to press any button that will reveal your mission to Mr. Boring, who is yapping away at the front of the room. With the phone in your lap, you try not to look down as you type: “sccer canceled! pick^ @2 thx <3.”
Sent. You slip it into you pocket, fearing you will not be able to discreetly get it back in your bag. But wait … your BFF Lucy’s hair looked utterly ridiculous when you passed her in the hall on your way to bio. It’s unthinkable to wait until lunch to tell her. Only a horrid friend would let her saunter around with a mortifying hairdo! So, you repeat the sneaky process of texting: “Fix ur hair, its sticking ^!!!!” Now, not only have you just missed two whole possibly important minutes of Mr. Boring’s lecture, but you have furthered the decline of your spelling and vocabulary.
Could you understand the title of this article? Anyone who has ever texted or used instant messaging can. Most teens love to text. What our English teachers, parents, and future employers would prefer us to say is “I love grammar,” which most of us don’t. There are times when we have to use proper grammar and times when we don’t. The problem is that the line between when to spell-check and proofread and when to just type and send is becoming blurred and almost invisible.
The way we type when we use virtual communication devices affects the way we spell – not just when we’re in a rush, but on school or job assignments too. Ever caught yourself writing u instead of you in an essay for school? What about tho instead of though? In a world where instant gratification is everything, we simply do not take the time to add the few extra letters. Although teens today will eventually become the ones who set the standards for spelling and grammar, our elders are calling the shots now, and they tend to look down on spelling and grammatical errors. This could easily affect one’s grades or job opportunities.
Notice it or not, the words we choose, or rather don’t choose, when we use informal communication have significance. Rarely in a text message will a teen use the extensive vocabulary preached by our educators. Seldom do we see the word exultant for happy, morose for sad, querulous for annoyed, or ecstatic for glad in a text. We must reawaken this vast glossary of obscure and unused words if we expect to succeed on exams like the SATs that affect our future.
So, go ahead, work your fingers to the bone texting, but before you hit send, think about what you have written. Consider the words you chose and the way you spelled them and maybe, just maybe, you will retype your message.
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This article has 306 comments.
"As long as [people know the difference]"
It is getting to the point where people no longer know the difference between "textspeak" and proper grammar.
The first rule of writing is to know your audience, if you don't write to your audience then your work is useless.
"Textspeak" is impermissible to use in everyday speech and should not be used in the majority of your writing. A large percentage of teenagers these days primarily use texting as their primary written communication. This corrupts their English, both written and spoken, in a way that cannot be allowed to continue.
It will be allowed to continue, no one cares enough.
But, it is alot easier to talk in txt form when ur in a hurry.
But saying stuff like:
il b bk L8r c u 2mor
IS rediculous. i have friends email me like that.
It says i'll be back later see you tomorrow.
:/ i had a hard time reading it too. and i typed it lol.
I enjoyed your article. It was insightful for those oblivious.
In any case, if you haven't noticed, we also talk different. We never verbalize properly, do we? I don't even verbalize properly and bad grammar makes my skin crawl. I don't even use totally correct grammar while IMing or posting a comment on a site like this. Why? Because I'm typing the way that I speak. "Txt" is just another, less formal way to use the English language. Sure, it really bugs me, but hey...to each their own.
<3
But, sometimes you need to get information to someone fast! So, short texts are convenient.
"Could you understand the title of this article? Anyone who has ever texted or used instant messaging can." True, people who IM and text could...but so could my grandmother (who hasn't IMed or texted) if she simply sounded that out. I'd consider revising that part, make it so that it's more of a valid point that it does a better job of backing up your article.
regardless, i use completely proper grammar and spelling when it comes to school assignments and my writing.
articles like this bother me: as a teenager who texts, i find them extremely condescending. i can honestly say, out of the dozens of people i text / instant message, the kind that use 'chatspeak' are very few and far between.