Luv 2 Txt | Teen Ink

Luv 2 Txt MAG

January 29, 2009
By Christina Costello BRONZE, Hopedale, Massachusetts
Christina Costello BRONZE, Hopedale, Massachusetts
1 article 0 photos 0 comments

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.


niesh13 SILVER said...
on Aug. 14 2010 at 12:13 pm
niesh13 SILVER, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
6 articles 0 photos 54 comments

Favorite Quote:
Love Me, Hate Me. I Really Don't Care .
Truth Is...Life Goes On , With or Without You

Lol, Nun Taken. Bt Yur Tlkin About Havin 2 Juggle Both.? Bcuz Even Tht Is Annoyin 2 Mee.!

on Aug. 13 2010 at 5:38 pm
DifferentTeen PLATINUM, Seaford, Delaware
32 articles 2 photos 329 comments

Favorite Quote:
"There’s no such thing as true love, just spurts of insanity—falling over and over again, thinking that won’t happen to me"

See, that ^ is annoying to me. No offense.

on Aug. 13 2010 at 5:36 pm
DifferentTeen PLATINUM, Seaford, Delaware
32 articles 2 photos 329 comments

Favorite Quote:
"There’s no such thing as true love, just spurts of insanity—falling over and over again, thinking that won’t happen to me"

Everyone makes misakes, no one is exactly perfect. And I agree with you that people can text crazy and still have really good grammar. I prefer to talk normally, and not "hayy whaddup gurl" because quite frankly it gets on my nerves.

on Jul. 22 2010 at 2:18 pm
deus-ex-machina14 BRONZE, Stewartsville, New Jersey
1 article 0 photos 439 comments

Favorite Quote:
"There are two main tragedies in life. One is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it." -Oscar Wilde

You make a lot of good points, but not everyone that texts abbreviates and mis-spells to save characters. Me and most of my friends spell everything out. It does build bad habits, but I don't think it shifts the futures of those who do it all that much....

on Jul. 22 2010 at 1:30 pm
I do think that texting has become an epidemic of our generation. My friends and I used to use text talk but once I got into high school I realized how it was affecting my English grade. I got a D first semester for text talk. It was bad  and my dad, being an English teacher him self, was very disappointed. Now when I text I use proper grammar and capitalization. When I see people talking like that I can't even understand it anymore!

on Jul. 1 2010 at 12:32 pm
Kaileigh918 BRONZE, Orange Park, Florida
4 articles 0 photos 33 comments

Favorite Quote:
"There's no shortcuts to anywhere worth going"
-me

Oh, geez, thats embarrasing...

on Jun. 30 2010 at 7:37 pm
beautifuldreamer GOLD, Hanover, Maryland
14 articles 10 photos 59 comments

you're*

grammar*


on Jun. 30 2010 at 7:34 pm
beautifuldreamer GOLD, Hanover, Maryland
14 articles 10 photos 59 comments

grammar*

:)


on Jun. 30 2010 at 7:33 pm
beautifuldreamer GOLD, Hanover, Maryland
14 articles 10 photos 59 comments
I completely agree! It drives me crazy when people say "there" for everything, or try to look smart and say "their" when it should be one of the other two, or "your" for you are. It's not that hard to figure out, people!

on Jun. 30 2010 at 6:51 pm
cassidyasalways BRONZE, El Paso, Texas
1 article 0 photos 7 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Be the best that you can be, and that will always be good enough"

Very True! Bravo! I think it is time to open our generation's eyes. I catch my self sometimes putting idk instead of I'm not sure  or I don't know. But this is very true, we forget how to spell and phrase things because we don't have to in text message. I commend you on your effort to get this out to teens!

on Jun. 30 2010 at 5:12 pm
ellebelly SILVER, Keller, Texas
7 articles 2 photos 10 comments

Favorite Quote:
yesterday is history tomorrow is a mystery today is a gift that's why its called the present

this is so true! i got a 70 on an english paper due to incorect use of words and spelling things wrong. txtn language rly has an effect on how we tlk. learn from my mistakes and start speeling out words!

on Jun. 30 2010 at 4:39 pm
Yousmell-likealoser BRONZE, Belgium, Wisconsin
4 articles 5 photos 43 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Life may not always be what you want, but life is all you've got; so stick a flower in your bellybutton and be happy!"

I really agree with this. I was having that problem for a while and a teacher had totally called me out for it. Now I'm thinking twice about my texts and I'm trying to convince my friends to start paying attention, too. Great article. :)

AFlamel said...
on Jun. 30 2010 at 2:24 pm
I have to say that I am one of those people who simply cannot use chatspeak, even if they try! It bugs some of my friends, but I just point out that I still type/text faster than they do. Great points though.

Lilliterra said...
on Jun. 30 2010 at 1:51 pm
I think text language is hard to read, and I think that in little phone texts it is ok, but if you are trying to sound intellegent, and want yourself understood, it is definately not the think to do. I wish people would give a care about spelling. Text language is fine in the right setting, but people need to learn to draw the line! It seems like no one knows the difference between "there" "they're" and "their" anymore. Misusing these things makes a person appear unintelegent. Not that they nesessarily are, but it looks that way.

on Jun. 30 2010 at 9:09 am
Kaileigh918 BRONZE, Orange Park, Florida
4 articles 0 photos 33 comments

Favorite Quote:
"There's no shortcuts to anywhere worth going"
-me

Ok... this is just stupid. I text with HORRIBLE grammer, yet I'm in advanced English and keep up an A. See? wats up i needa txt u!!!!! But I still have PERFECT grammer!!!!

renegade16 said...
on Jun. 30 2010 at 8:40 am
It's actually an effort for me to text in text language. But it's like short hand,where you drop nouns and stuff, pros even use it.

CSHCSH GOLD said...
on Jun. 30 2010 at 4:03 am
CSHCSH GOLD, Jakarta, Other
16 articles 0 photos 35 comments

Favorite Quote:
Everybody tries to change the world, but nobody tries to change themselves
-Leo Tolstoy

i actually agree with starlightstormcloud. she sound convincing. wasnt texting made to send brief messeges?

Elena_Fisher said...
on Jun. 15 2010 at 1:12 pm
i don't because all they do is take it away

on Jun. 8 2010 at 4:21 pm
PurpleFeather BRONZE, Canton, Connecticut
1 article 0 photos 124 comments

Favorite Quote:
"The pen is mightier than the sword." - Edward Bulwer-Lytton

I odn't think she was saying that if you text that way then you will DEFINIETLY have horrible grammar. I think that she was just saying that sometimes it can leak in. And some people that are smart and get straight A's like you and me can switch our brains like that, but others don't read that much or care or know about grammar, so mispelled words and stuff don't bother them and they think dat dis kinda wrting is real English. That's all the author was trying to say.

on Jun. 8 2010 at 4:18 pm
PurpleFeather BRONZE, Canton, Connecticut
1 article 0 photos 124 comments

Favorite Quote:
"The pen is mightier than the sword." - Edward Bulwer-Lytton

Wow, you're so right. I've actually been saying that for a really long tim.e I usually use full words and correct  grammar in my text messages except for when the message will be too long otherwise.

Kids think that writing like that is cool, but in reality i doesn't look cool, it is confusing and difficult to read. I mean, unless you spend you entire life with your nose in a phone, the text that you read in books/magazines/newspapers everyday look nothing like text lingo, which makes it confusing for our brains. I mean, think about it. I've probably mispelled like, 8 words in this comment, and you've probably noticed every single one of them. Doesn't it bother you when a word is spelled wrong?