Today, text-messaging has probably become young people’s most common form of communication. Some teachers think that because of this, young people are not writing correctly at school. They fear that once students get used to it, they will find it hard to switch back to using correct grammar and spelling. How did things begin this way?
It all began with e-mail, online chat-rooms, and games. Then step by step young people made sentences, phrases and words shorter. As text-messaging continued to become popular, people invented more and more words. Today, it is like a real language with its own grammar and vocabulary. The growth of text-messaging has raised an important question: As students become fluent in text-messaging, do their writing skills suffer?
People have different ideas about the effects of text-messaging on students’ writing skills. Some say that students are losing the ability to write long, correct sentences. Others say that text-messaging is having a good effect on the language students use in their schoolwork. It shows that they are creative and good at expressing themselves. And if students can keep the two systems separate - one for text-messaging and one for school - this will help students appreciate reading and writing more.
Some people suggest that one way to reduce the bad effects of text-messaging is to find ways to use technology as a positive learning tool. For example, students can be allowed to type their assignments in a cell phone message and send them to their teachers, but they must type correctly. In this way, students are using the technology that they are familiar with to communicate in a form of language suitable for schoolwork. It shows students that text-messaging is fine for social communication, but correct grammar and spelling are necessary for communication in school.
(Adapted from Strategic Reading by Richards and Eckstut-Didier)