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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.
by the way- you*, once*,
And most of all I'm sorry Christina C., I would want two people whom i do not know commenting on my article again and again and I'm sorry for being one of those people. i will not do it on this or any of your articles again
"Standers." Enough said, I suppose.
Honest mistakes are fine. Intentionally mangling the language is gross.
Your Mozart comparison? That was simply silly. Pure and simple. You have absolutely no idea what you are saying anymore.
And yes- Most texters are lazy, when it comes to texting. That is what the discussion is about, you know. They are lazy texters. Don't try to make my comment out to be more than it was.
"On top of that," about what percent of texters do you think take the time to use proper spelling and grammar? Quite truthfully I don't know. But I would imagine you and your friend are a minority, the texters with grammar. So, if you are to say that texting without grammar is lazy, then you are calling the majority of the texting community lazy. Offensive to millions- and if to you most texters are lazy, then you must have a spectacular outlook on life.
Faster and easier is lazy? That sounds like a final attempt for AT&T to get Verison customers to switch to their network. So by those standers, if you want to listen to a great work of music, listening to Mozart rather than writing your own symphony is lazy? Watching the Super Bowl? Looking at a Picasso? Sorry if I took that out of scale- just making a point. For all you and I know, there is a texter who uses despicable spelling and grammar, but works harder every day than what you and I do in a week.
Did you proof read that before you sent it?
On top of that, everytime I ask someone why they would write in such a way, the top two answers are, "faster" and "easier." Doing things the fast and easy way instead of the long and hard way... I'm pretty sure that is a sign of laziness. In fact, the definition of lazy is, "Unwilling to work". They can take the extra time, they choose not to do so, which is lazy.
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“You know you're in love when you can't fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.”<br /> ~Dr. Seuss