Thursday, September 16, 2010

Texted, texting, had texted, txting, Are these even words???

An article from The Washington Post suggests that text messages and instant messages have no effect on a child's ability to spell, which I completely agree with. Basing my judgement on personal experiences, I would mostly agree and find most of the information as facts. On the otherhand, the article presents and argument that I strongly disagree with. According to my experience with text messages, there are no known rules to spelling a word. For example, the article suggests that students always use "wanna" instead of "wanta" or "wana". Predictive texts, which are programed on the devices, register the word wanna instead of the other options; however, I know many friends and family members that use any derivation of a word. I've seen "wana", "wanta", and so many more slang words to represent this phrase. Texting follows no specific rules, instead I believe texting is a way of expressing your personality. By spelling a word in a certain fashion, your friends and family members can understand your moods and tones as if you were literally having a face- to- face conversation.

How does this article adjust my thoughts on technology's influence on literacy?
I don't really know... I am not sure if my thought about literacy is developed enough to make a judgement. I think the best answer I can supply at this junction is that students who wish to prevail, will prevail. Students who have apathetic feelings about there education..... well its my goal to inspire them...

I think the following video closely resembles my current thoughts because it shows how students can choose to use texting as a resource for learning.

1 comment:

  1. You make a good point about the standardization of texting! I think the attitude of most texters is that grammar rules and spelling are flexible. Like during the time of Shakespeare when people could spell the same word several different ways.

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