Does Text Speak Hinder Literacy?

cul8r.jpgIt’s a question that has been posed many times. With the prevalence of “text speak,” or the abbreviated and sometimes mashed-up language used in sending SMS messages, people–particularly parents and teachers of school-aged youth–have begun to worry about the potential of SMS in contributing to illiteracy. Imagine spelling “CUL8R” instead of the correct phrase “see you later.” What about using phonetic spellings like “dat” instead of “that.” Wht abt rmovng vowels frm msgs altgthr?

Sounds bad, doesn’t it? However, it doesn’t seem so much of an issue when it comes to literacy and learning, according to research by Coventry University in the UK, as cited by BBC. The study found that students who are fond of “textisms” are actually doing well in correct spelling and writing.

“So far, our research has suggested that there is no evidence to link text messaging among children to a poorer ability in standard English.

“Those children who were the best at using “textisms” were also found to be the better spellers and writers,” …

However, the conclusions made were more of an affirmation to the skills of students who are already good writers and spellers in the first place–and these are also the same students who are identified as strong readers. The question now is whether these textisms are negatively affecting students who are not strong at either reading, spelling or writing in the first place.

Of course, for adults, this could also be bigger issue altogether. After all, things done out of habit are quite difficult to unlearn. For instance, for people like myself in the business of writing content, slips in spelling, grammar, and usage could be quite costly (or at least embarassing). And this is why I usually type out SMS messages in full, most of the time assisted by the phone’s T9 dictionary. I only abbreviate when I edit my messages to fit within the SMS character limits–I’m a cheapo!

Do you think textspeak poses a hindrance to learning and literacy?

October 1st, 2006 Posted by J. Angelo Racoma in News, Article at 11:42 am Comment Now! »
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