Text Messaging: The bane of Grammar teachers everywhere

DRoseDARs · March 9, 2003, 18:30

From CNN.com:

EDIT: Forgot the link

http://www.cnn.com/2003/EDUCATION/03...eut/index.html

Quote:

Text message essay baffles British teacher
Monday, March 3, 2003 Posted: 10:17 AM EST (1517 GMT)

LONDON, England (Reuters) -- An English essay written by a British teenager in text messaging short-hand has reignited concern among teachers that literacy standards are under threat.

The Daily Telegraph newspaper reported Monday that the 13-year-old's teacher could not decipher what the youngster had written.

"I could not believe what I was seeing. The page was riddled with hieroglyphics, many of which I simply could not translate," the teacher told the newspaper.

The girl's essay began: "My smmr hols wr CWOT. B4, we used 2go2 NY 2C my bro, his GF & thr 3 :- kids FTF. ILNY, it's a gr8 plc."

Which in translation from text messaging shorthand would read: "My summer holidays were a complete waste of time. Before, we used to go to New York to see my brother, his girlfriend and their three screaming kids face to face. I love New York. It's a great place."

Judith Gillespie, of the Scottish Parent Teacher Council, told the newspaper a decline in grammar and written English was partly linked to the text messaging craze.

"Pupils think orally and write phonetically," she said.

Just how stupid does one have to be to honestly believe such "writing" is accetable in school? Is there a rating system with which one might gauge someone's level of "dumbness?"

Our civilization, in decline...

DinoDoc · March 9, 2003, 18:35

I think that they should drop the kid down a few grades. Clearly the girl needs to be sent back to 1st grade in order to relearn how to write if that is the limit of her abilities.

Asher · March 9, 2003, 18:37

If she lived here, this news story could make her a ton of money by suing the school/teacher for violating FOIP.

DRoseDARs · March 9, 2003, 18:39

FOIP = Freedom of Ignorant People, perhaps?

Asher · March 9, 2003, 18:40

Freedom of Information and Privacy act

DinoDoc · March 9, 2003, 18:40

I think that is close enough.

DRoseDARs · March 9, 2003, 18:41

I like mine better...

jdd2007 · March 9, 2003, 19:27

our civilization is not in decline

well, not because of this anyway

plenty of kids can write like that

but very few do in school assignments

these are the stupid ones

i hadnt heard of the FOIP before

but children who write like that

should just be given a bad grade

and left at that

srholmes · March 9, 2003, 19:32

y is ths a prblm 4 u? i cnt ndrstnd.....

etc etc

Provost Harrison · March 9, 2003, 20:53

Well I didn't have a clue what she was writing about. I have an objection to all this stupid shorthand stuff...just take a bit of effort and write the words in that language that we all know and love called ENGLISH!

ranskaldan · March 9, 2003, 20:59

About time this arcanely medieval system called English orthography is reformed to fit the modern age.

Skanky Burns · March 9, 2003, 21:02

Most people can understand the shorthand language.
Then again, most people are smart enough to realise it shouldn't be used in school assignments.

Q Classic · March 9, 2003, 21:05

there's a difference 'tween those only a few years younger than the generation that began the im craze (the break now i would wager is roughly between over 17 and 17 and below). those below 17 tend to overuse the abbreviations... sometimes i have trouble reading my own brother's ims to me.

those above 17 tend to still use classic english, albeit often throw in a few abbreviations. but not the shorthand like that.

as for the girl, she's just a fvckwit. give her a bad grade, tell her she's stupid, and send her down a few levels.

Jaguar · March 9, 2003, 21:06

Some of it is just obnoxious ("look at me, I can spell skater as "sk8er" even though that saves no time whatsoever!") (Not that I'm making a jab at any particular person in the entertainment industry.) But capitalization isn't really necessary. I don't mind it, but I don't think it serves much of a useful purpose.

Tiamat · March 9, 2003, 21:08

You would think now wouldn't you?

Charlemagne120 · March 9, 2003, 21:28

i write shorthand when i send text messages (txtmsg) but still some stupid kid wrote a paper like that?

a girl nonetheless....no surprise

Jaguar · March 9, 2003, 21:40

Quote:

Originally posted by Charlemagne120
i write shorthand when i send text messages (txtmsg) but still some stupid kid wrote a paper like that?

a girl nonetheless....no surprise

Somebody got dumped recently.

Skanky Burns · March 9, 2003, 21:44

I'm kind of strange - I write correct English even in sms's. Complete with capital letters and everything.

Tiamat · March 9, 2003, 21:50

Quote:

Originally posted by Charlemagne120
i write shorthand when i send text messages (txtmsg) but still some stupid kid wrote a paper like that?

a girl nonetheless....no surprise

ahhhh yes.....but wasn't it a man who invented it in the first place.....go figure the pot calling the kettle black

Zero · March 9, 2003, 22:04

Try reading old english. That thing isnt english at all if you go back enough.

Language changes constantly. If it didnt change, we would all be speaking the same language now.

and Im sure people from the past all had some new way of talking that they were repulsed at.

Imagine 100 years from now, presidential speech is given in l33t talk... :shudder:

Skanky Burns · March 9, 2003, 22:24

Quote:

Imagine 100 years from now, presidential speech is given in l33t talk... :shudder:

"N our new budget r0x0rz..."

Q Classic · March 9, 2003, 23:12

oh, pl33z.

it'll be

"N ur nu bud63t r0x0rz my c0x0rz!!!"

Skanky Burns · March 9, 2003, 23:28

Q Classic · March 10, 2003, 00:39

txt msgN

Quote:

duz txt msgN mAk U :-) o :-( ?
R U wurEd dat d eng lngwij wil bcum cor^ted & unrEdabl, dat kds wont no how 2 spL? olds got ^set rEsntlE wen a 13-yr-old

)3 in w scotl& rOt a skul SA in txt. she sed it wz EZer thn writN all d borN lng wrds. it Bgan: “my smmr hols wr a CWOT. B4, we Usd 2go2 NY toC my bro, his GF & thr 3 :- kds FTF. ILNY, it iz a gr8 plc.” d Tcha sed he c% dnt BlEv it, it wz fulla hIrOglifs he c% dnt transl8
bt dnt fret. d sAm sorta shrt& n tLegrams o cAbls (remMbR dem?) didnt dstroi eng. kds txt (nOt d nu verb) Ech uthR cuz itz

& chEp. 4ling mob fone chRjs & nu typz of mob fones mA mAk vox cmUnik8shn populR agN
txtN wil stil survIv, bt az a ritN dialect, jst az spOkn dialex survIvd Tchaz F4tz 2 frash dem outa :- kds. so cheer ^!

Provost Harrison · March 10, 2003, 13:42

Quote:

Originally posted by Skanky Burns
I'm kind of strange - I write correct English even in sms's. Complete with capital letters and everything.

Hey, I am the same, although I am a bit of a perfectionist...