I believe Naomi Baron hit this primary argument right on the nose; I agree with her every statement because I can relate each example throughout the article to myself! When I am on the internet I find myself using “lol, brb, omg…” and many other abbreviations, but I know the fine line between this and my classroom language. I also agree strongly with the “whatever” attitude shift because my peers act this same way. I even find myself using a computer to write something even if the teacher says it doesn’t have to be typed just because it is so much easier for the computer to find and fix my spelling and grammar mistakes. Another situation I found very interesting and kind of humorous during the Control section of this article was that people will text because they don’t want to feel obligated to talk to the person; they just want to give them the information and be done with it. I never looked at it that way, but it is so true! I found myself once pretending to be texting to someone while passing a boy I didn’t want to talk to, when really I was just looking through my calling list. It truly sounds awful, but I felt that if I looked like I was doing something on my phone he wouldn’t interrupt me and that is exactly what happened! :)
I would say that I agree with the authors primary argument. Regarding "online lingo" it has been my experience that most people only use such language on informal communication systems such as online chatrooms and texting. Even those who I have witnessed using copious amounts of "online lingo" know when it is appropriate and when it's not. I'm not concerned about the addition of acronyms or decreased certainty about when a string of words is a compound, a hyphenated word, or one word because as the author mentioned the English language is constantly evolving. I would classifly myself as belonging to the group which has the "whatever" attitude, since it doesn't bother me if someone says 'can' or 'may'and other similar niceties. I definately agree that people use modern forms of communication to control how and when they communicate. As the author stated if you don't like the use of language today just wait because it goes in cycles, and you can always impose your own standards.
Technology is becoming very advanced in this generation. I have the Apple Iphone and when I text on my phone it has auto correct. When I text “dont,” it corrects it and reads don’t. That is one small correction but you get my point. That is why I think that the study numbers might not be fully accurate. I also believe if students are taught right, they will know when it is appropriate to use the new day lingo and when they need to concentrate on making the writing readable for everyone. The author said, “Infusion of written acronyms into everyday speech is a common linguistic process—to wit, RSVP, AWOL, or ASAP. If a few more lexical shortenings make their way into general usage, that's nothing out of the ordinary.” Those words seem to be sociably acceptable, where the new lingo is not accepted. So I do not believe our lingo is destroying the English language.
I believe students who use internet lingo such as abbreviated words and acronyms do this out of a lack of motivation and student professionalism. In short I do not believe the internet is making permanent changes to interpersonal or even written language, but rather like most things is becoming its own beast with its own rules and language. For the most part I believe serious students can distinguish between appropriate language on the internet, and appropriate language for the classroom and interpersonal skills. I believe it is also important to take into account how much social interaction a student participates in online versus interpersonal social interaction. My only concern in the paper was how technology was being used by people to avoid real social interaction: pretending to be checking voice messages when approached by someone you don't wish to speak to and what not. I see this as a negative in that people are preferring to interact with a machine rather than a flesh and blood person. Not to jump to conclusions but I believe this to be a problem seeing as how learning relies heavily on interaction, and teachers need that interpersonal connection in order to reach students. For the record if I ever catch a student texting in my class when they should be paying attention to the lecture, I'm taking their phone away.
I do agree with the primary argument presented in this reading because technology is increasing how everyone learns, and is bringing new learning techniques too. I do find myself using abbreviations while I am online with my friends. I use abbreviations such as “lol, omg, brb…” and many others, but I know when to use abbreviations and to use correct language. I do agree that if I don’t want to have a long conversation with someone then I will just text them or email them. Sometimes you just don’t want to talk to someone or are too busy. I think that the “online or texting lingo” doesn’t really effect older generations because we have learned the rules for many years. I think that it will mostly effect the younger generations. I agree with the words “capital and capitol” I think they should just get rid of one and make one stand for both meanings. I agree with every statement in this article, and find myself doing some of the same things.
I agree that technology plays a part in the way we short hand things. I find myself using short had in text messages and on the internet. I agree with the "whatever" theory. I find that it is true for myself and my peers. I sometimes do not want to have long conversations with people so I e-mail them or text them. I find it easier to talk to people on the internet or in a text than talk to them on the phone or in person. I do not think that the lingo will affect the older generations because of knowing the rules and being taught how things are supposed to be. I find myself agreeing that one word could be used instead of two like "Capital and Capitol." I completely agree with this article
I do have to agree with the primary arguement and I also have to say that I myself can relate to many of the examples given in the Control section of the reading. I find myself avoiding other people's calls when I just don't feel like talking and pretending to text someone in awkward situations. Today's technology has made people avoid face-to-face conversations and result to using a less personal interaction such as a text or e-mail. However, knowing when to use certain abberviated phrases and internet lingo is the key. As teachers we must teach students when such lingo is and is not appropriate. The "wahtever" attitude is exactly how I feel. As a kid we were taught the difference between words that sounded the same but were different in their meanings. What is the point of this? Today we are most likely to use the one that appears most often to explain both words. In my opinion there should only be one spelling for the word and have that particular word mean two different things. Spelling may be another huge issue becuase of the shift in the english language, but this can be solved easily. Again, as teachers we must enforce spelling correctness. I know a couple of my professors don't even grade the mechnical aspects of the papers I turn in. So this does not help me learn from my mistakes. I think that this article has many great points and does point out some of the things that today's society does wrong in the communication department. We should change this but I doubt it will.
I understand that language has phases and goes through changes, but I think we do need to worry about students’ grammar, including punctuations. I agree that as the teacher there is the right to tell students that the language and slang is inappropriate for their assignments. Which I’m sure they would have no problem accommodating. I'm not so sure that texting and email are heavily changing our use of language. Yes, there are little changes, for example, “out of 11,718 words, only 31 were "online lingo" abbreviations, and only 90 were acronyms (of which 76 were LOL).” I am under the impression that the era of texting and emailing has made the youth a little too layed back concerning grammar. As students they should be concerned with their grammar errors, mostly punctuation. It looks negatively when, as an adult, employees or students do not understand proper punctuation. I am guilty of the same thing, I have little understanding of proper punctuation, which makes me fee; a bit ignorant. We see from the studies from the reading that punctuation is the only substantial inconsistencies in students grammar, the solution is to continuously work on this and keep reminding students of punctuation guidelines. Finally, I don't believe cell phones should be in schools, simply for the problem of distractions.
Technology has come to play an important part in the realm of education, just as it always had. There have always been new technological advances that people have approached with a certain degree of fear; be it computers, television, radio, the wheel, or fire. The latest advances deal with communication. There are so many different forms of communication popping up that it is definitely changing the way we communicate with each other. Some people react to this with an amount of fear, shunning the new technology. However, technology has changed the way we communicate, and it will in the future. The telephone, for example, was at one time a new technology. As far as the field of education goes, I don’t think there is going to be as much of a negative impact as many seem to believe. I can’t envision a day when students are going to be writing OMGs and LOLs in their school papers. There has always been a difference between the informal way of talking we all use with one another and the formal dialect we adopt in written papers or in public speaking. The rules are what they are, and though they may change, I cannot imagine technology eroding them to the point that they no longer matter. After all, there are still teachers to teach the rules to these students.
I believe that the internet lingo that we are using today in this generation is not necessarily ruining our English language. Most phones now have a spell check feature that will change the misspelled words in text messages. Most kids that are in late high school and college know when it is appropriate to use the internet lingo and when to be more professional. In younger children in middle school they may not know how to turn off their internet lingo and continue to use it in school. One bad thing that I see about using cell phones and internet to communicate with people is that you avoid actually having conversations with people on the phone or face to face. I do agree with most of the things that were being said in this article. Now that most people use text messages and e-mail to communicate we can teach our future students to use this when it is the right time.
After reading this it made me think a lot about our English language. I believe that texting is hurting our English language, and communication skills. I always find myself texting on the phone more than talking. I am afraid not for our generation but the generation after us. I am not worried as much about the writing skills of our generation. I very rarely hear about people using texting slang in an essay. I feel like texting slang is very useful in some situations. It is much easier texting or typing lol other than laugh out loud, or bbl other than be back later. All in all I would have to say that I agree and disagree. I agree that texting lingo isn’t helping our English language, but I also feel like it isn’t drastically hurting it either. However I do feel like texting and instant messaging is killing our communication skills.
I agree that my new texting/internet lingo has changed our language somewhat. I do these things on a everyday basis, but I know that these words or abbreviations are not things that should be used in a formal paper or in a formal setting. The first thing that caught my attention in the article talked about the use of apostrophes. I have to say I am guilty of doing this. When I am texting or am talking to someone online I never use them, so I catch myself doing this when I am typing something on the computer. I also relate a lot to the control section of this reading. Sometimes texting just seems easier, especially when you are not comfortable talking to a certain person. Caller ID is a huge thing with me. I am really bad about seeing a certain name come up on my phone and not answering the call. It sounds terrible, but its true, and of course there are also those names that come up that I can not answer fast enough!
I definitely agree with this article 100%! We as a society have completely changed our language. However, we do know the fine line between text/instant message lingo, everyday talk and the correct language for writing papers. I find myself typing papers more than hand writing them for the simple fact that I am so used to typing, that it takes just minutes whereas hand writing a paper takes more time and it hurts my hand! I also find myself saying aloud the phrases ‘LOL’, ‘BRB’, ‘BTW’, ‘IDK’, ‘IDC’ and ‘OMG’ let alone texting or typing them! It is actually almost pathetic that I use these acronyms in real life conversations. It is even more pathetic that people still follow what I am saying. It is even a habit of mine to pretend to be on the phone, look through old texts, or even walk across the street when I do not want to communicate with another person. Silencing or ignoring calls is another habit of mine, I must admit. If I do not feel like conversing with someone, I will do whatever it takes to not do so. However, when I am speaking to an elder person, writing a term paper, or simply turning in an assignment I change that lingo to English language. I will, however, admit one more embarrassing habit dealing with this text/instant message lingo, I do find myself backspacing a lot while typing papers, on a count of I used the lingo instead of correct usage. All in all, the article hit this new ‘lingo’ right smack on the dot. It has changed the way we talk and type. I do believe, however, that most people know when it is right and when it is wrong.
I believe that I agree with the authors main points. This era has become and era of technology, but I believe that "most"(not all) people have learned when it is appropriate to use it and when it's not. I do find it annoying to here someone using online lingo in everyday, face to face conversations. However, these misuses are few and far between. I also see how the attitude of "whatever" has come about. Every day we see students care less and less about appropriate grammar. I myself have even fallen into this category at times. I don't necesarilly think that English is going down the tubes, but I do think that educators need to step up and take action against the "whatever attitude." Students need to be intrinsically motivated so that proper language is not something that is seen as "I have to do it this way," but "I want to do it this way because its correct."
I do agree with the primary argument Naomi S. Baron makes in her article. Internet lingo and text messaging really have only taken off in the last decade; text message mostly in the last three or four years. The word text message itself proves that this type of “lingo” is changing the English language somewhat. Only in the last couple years has the word ‘text’ been used as a verb. I’m sure if I would go back in time ten or twenty odd years and said to someone “Just text me the directions”, they wouldn’t have the slightest clue what I mean. Another part I agree with is, the about the reliance on spell check, I admit if I didn’t have spell check I would have many misspelled words and probably never realize this. Another section I agree with in the ‘control’ part is about how technology enhances our ability to manipulate our communication with others. I am guilty of using the phone call/ browsing through old text messages tricks to avoid conversation or even just to kill time while making myself look busy. Even though I am guilty myself of doing what was discussed in this article I agree that students already understand when particular styles of language are appropriate and when they are not for the most part.
I agree to the simple fact that text lingo is killing this generations language to a point. The fact that repetition sometimes becomes a habit is the worst part about the way people today use abbreviations and acronyms. The short cuts of words sometimes can through people off causing misspellings, and bad habits of using the shortened version of words on in appropriate occasions not meaning to. I do agree with Lenhart, Smith, & Macgill that most people do know the proper time to use the abbreviations. The importance of language should not be over looked for the simple fact it is a way a communication. This is a very important topic that if it is overlooked can make people look unprofessional and lazy. The technology has allowed people to communicate with friends a family easier and allows quick access. This to me is a good thing because I enjoy the technology. Although the fact that it is easy to access friends through email and text it is also easy to ignore someone calling through caller id. Depending on the use of the technology can have a positive or negative effect.
I consider myself one of those people who use lingo everyday in my text messages, instant messages, etc. In my opinion, I do not feel as if digital media has killed my language. I, like most others that use lingo, know when to use lingo and when to not. I know that if I am writing a paper for English I will not use lingo because there is a time and place for lingo. This comment is a great example of where I do not use lingo. If this were an instant message or text, I'm sure that I would not be using apostrophes, commas, or even capital letters for that matter. On the other hand, I also believe that texting has made it hard on teachers in the classroom. I can honestly say, with many teachers having my back, that many students do not pay attention during lectures because they are texting on their phones. So, I feel like digital media has not affected our attitude toward language but has affected our participation during lectures.
To anyone who has ever read Chaucer, it’s clear that change in language over time is natural. The question is what effects the current changes will have. The changes occurring in language today seem to be for the purpose of convenience, such as shortening common phrases into abbreviations. New technology seems to be doing the work for us, leading to the “whatever” attitude. However I would have to argue that most people understand what language is appropriate in what context. Most of the people I associate with will cringe on those rare occasions when someone tries to use “LOL” in conversation. Although we’re all guilty of using abbreviations, we understand that they are not appropriate in school papers.
Okay I can see, to a degree, both sides of this issue. On the one hand I think the author has a good point, in that if you don't wish to talk to someone using 'lol speak' than you can easily block them on a messenger, hang up the phone, or not return the text. It's really, to a point, a very simple solution to the problem. However, a prime example of just what letting children get away with this type of butchering of a language can cause was actually found when I was browsing another site for amusement and stumbled across this gem of a resume letter, http://emailsfromcrazypeople.com/2009/11/25/youre-hire/ . This folks is what would concern me about the increasing use of 'lol speak'. True this young lady did not write LOL, BRB, or ROTFLMAO (although I did do a good bit of that after reading the resume), however she has no concept of how to write an appropriate resume, what language to use, or it seems any interest at all in using a spell checking program. Her resume in reality sounds and reads far more like a detailed text message, than anything that should ever be shown to a potential employer, and I have to wonder if perhaps this is due to the lack of spelling, grammar, and clarity of texts, messaging, and of course lol speak.
I do agree with the author’s argument that the attitude towards language is changing. I see many examples of this throughout my day. I see signs that students made and put on their doors spelling words wrong and using “texting lingo” and even in the classroom when I’m peer advising someone’s paper in class. There is a large amount of words that are misspelled. I also agree with the idea that we are becoming dependant on Spell check on the computer. There are countless papers that I have turned in that I thought were correct because there wasn’t an error on the page but once I got my assignment back there were multiple mistakes on words and grammar. I also type my blog posts on Microsoft Word to hopefully catch some mistakes that I made. I do think that the attitude towards language is changing but I do see people trying to make an effort to clarify and correct what they have written.
I agree with the Ms. Baron's arguemnet that language and the attitude towards language is changing. At first I did not agree with the more common use of "text" language. I believed that the use of accronyms was a result of laziness and a lack of motivation and encouraged the non-use of proper grammer and spelling skills. After reading the article I have come to terms that language is constantly evloving. I did not realize how often we us accronyms in our daily life, such as RSVP and ASAP. I think it is still important to teach proper spelling and grammer skills, and as long as we are able to put into proper context, "text" language is alright.
I think in a way the Digital Media is changing our language because, a lot of people don't communicate anymore unless it's through texting and so much slang is used today in text messages!.. but in a way we will always continue to use the English language when we are in a professional setting! Students today are so used to multi-tasking so we are expanded in our learning process and being able to know when to use the proper language.. when we are with certain people we have our own slang but if we are with more professional people we are going to use proper enlgish. Although if you are not careful you could end up using the slang in important documents when you least expect it.
I believe Naomi Baron hit this primary argument right on the nose; I agree with her every statement because I can relate each example throughout the article to myself! When I am on the internet I find myself using “lol, brb, omg…” and many other abbreviations, but I know the fine line between this and my classroom language. I also agree strongly with the “whatever” attitude shift because my peers act this same way. I even find myself using a computer to write something even if the teacher says it doesn’t have to be typed just because it is so much easier for the computer to find and fix my spelling and grammar mistakes. Another situation I found very interesting and kind of humorous during the Control section of this article was that people will text because they don’t want to feel obligated to talk to the person; they just want to give them the information and be done with it. I never looked at it that way, but it is so true! I found myself once pretending to be texting to someone while passing a boy I didn’t want to talk to, when really I was just looking through my calling list. It truly sounds awful, but I felt that if I looked like I was doing something on my phone he wouldn’t interrupt me and that is exactly what happened! :)
ReplyDeleteI would say that I agree with the authors primary argument. Regarding "online lingo" it has been my experience that most people only use such language on informal communication systems such as online chatrooms and texting. Even those who I have witnessed using copious amounts of "online lingo" know when it is appropriate and when it's not. I'm not concerned about the addition of acronyms or decreased certainty about when a string of words is a compound, a hyphenated word, or one word because as the author mentioned the English language is constantly evolving. I would classifly myself as belonging to the group which has the "whatever" attitude, since it doesn't bother me if someone says 'can' or 'may'and other similar niceties. I definately agree that people use modern forms of communication to control how and when they communicate. As the author stated if you don't like the use of language today just wait because it goes in cycles, and you can always impose your own standards.
ReplyDeleteTechnology is becoming very advanced in this generation. I have the Apple Iphone and when I text on my phone it has auto correct. When I text “dont,” it corrects it and reads don’t. That is one small correction but you get my point. That is why I think that the study numbers might not be fully accurate. I also believe if students are taught right, they will know when it is appropriate to use the new day lingo and when they need to concentrate on making the writing readable for everyone. The author said, “Infusion of written acronyms into everyday speech is a common linguistic process—to wit, RSVP, AWOL, or ASAP. If a few more lexical shortenings make their way into general usage, that's nothing out of the ordinary.” Those words seem to be sociably acceptable, where the new lingo is not accepted. So I do not believe our lingo is destroying the English language.
ReplyDeleteI believe students who use internet lingo such as abbreviated words and acronyms do this out of a lack of motivation and student professionalism. In short I do not believe the internet is making permanent changes to interpersonal or even written language, but rather like most things is becoming its own beast with its own rules and language. For the most part I believe serious students can distinguish between appropriate language on the internet, and appropriate language for the classroom and interpersonal skills. I believe it is also important to take into account how much social interaction a student participates in online versus interpersonal social interaction. My only concern in the paper was how technology was being used by people to avoid real social interaction: pretending to be checking voice messages when approached by someone you don't wish to speak to and what not. I see this as a negative in that people are preferring to interact with a machine rather than a flesh and blood person. Not to jump to conclusions but I believe this to be a problem seeing as how learning relies heavily on interaction, and teachers need that interpersonal connection in order to reach students. For the record if I ever catch a student texting in my class when they should be paying attention to the lecture, I'm taking their phone away.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with the primary argument presented in this reading because technology is increasing how everyone learns, and is bringing new learning techniques too. I do find myself using abbreviations while I am online with my friends. I use abbreviations such as “lol, omg, brb…” and many others, but I know when to use abbreviations and to use correct language. I do agree that if I don’t want to have a long conversation with someone then I will just text them or email them. Sometimes you just don’t want to talk to someone or are too busy. I think that the “online or texting lingo” doesn’t really effect older generations because we have learned the rules for many years. I think that it will mostly effect the younger generations. I agree with the words “capital and capitol” I think they should just get rid of one and make one stand for both meanings. I agree with every statement in this article, and find myself doing some of the same things.
ReplyDeleteI agree that technology plays a part in the way we short hand things. I find myself using short had in text messages and on the internet. I agree with the "whatever" theory. I find that it is true for myself and my peers. I sometimes do not want to have long conversations with people so I e-mail them or text them. I find it easier to talk to people on the internet or in a text than talk to them on the phone or in person. I do not think that the lingo will affect the older generations because of knowing the rules and being taught how things are supposed to be. I find myself agreeing that one word could be used instead of two like "Capital and Capitol." I completely agree with this article
ReplyDeleteI do have to agree with the primary arguement and I also have to say that I myself can relate to many of the examples given in the Control section of the reading. I find myself avoiding other people's calls when I just don't feel like talking and pretending to text someone in awkward situations. Today's technology has made people avoid face-to-face conversations and result to using a less personal interaction such as a text or e-mail. However, knowing when to use certain abberviated phrases and internet lingo is the key. As teachers we must teach students when such lingo is and is not appropriate. The "wahtever" attitude is exactly how I feel. As a kid we were taught the difference between words that sounded the same but were different in their meanings. What is the point of this? Today we are most likely to use the one that appears most often to explain both words. In my opinion there should only be one spelling for the word and have that particular word mean two different things. Spelling may be another huge issue becuase of the shift in the english language, but this can be solved easily. Again, as teachers we must enforce spelling correctness. I know a couple of my professors don't even grade the mechnical aspects of the papers I turn in. So this does not help me learn from my mistakes. I think that this article has many great points and does point out some of the things that today's society does wrong in the communication department. We should change this but I doubt it will.
ReplyDeleteI understand that language has phases and goes through changes, but I think we do need to worry about students’ grammar, including punctuations. I agree that as the teacher there is the right to tell students that the language and slang is inappropriate for their assignments. Which I’m sure they would have no problem accommodating. I'm not so sure that texting and email are heavily changing our use of language. Yes, there are little changes, for example, “out of 11,718 words, only 31 were "online lingo" abbreviations, and only 90 were acronyms (of which 76 were LOL).” I am under the impression that the era of texting and emailing has made the youth a little too layed back concerning grammar. As students they should be concerned with their grammar errors, mostly punctuation. It looks negatively when, as an adult, employees or students do not understand proper punctuation. I am guilty of the same thing, I have little understanding of proper punctuation, which makes me fee; a bit ignorant. We see from the studies from the reading that punctuation is the only substantial inconsistencies in students grammar, the solution is to continuously work on this and keep reminding students of punctuation guidelines. Finally, I don't believe cell phones should be in schools, simply for the problem of distractions.
ReplyDeleteTechnology has come to play an important part in the realm of education, just as it always had. There have always been new technological advances that people have approached with a certain degree of fear; be it computers, television, radio, the wheel, or fire. The latest advances deal with communication. There are so many different forms of communication popping up that it is definitely changing the way we communicate with each other. Some people react to this with an amount of fear, shunning the new technology. However, technology has changed the way we communicate, and it will in the future. The telephone, for example, was at one time a new technology. As far as the field of education goes, I don’t think there is going to be as much of a negative impact as many seem to believe. I can’t envision a day when students are going to be writing OMGs and LOLs in their school papers. There has always been a difference between the informal way of talking we all use with one another and the formal dialect we adopt in written papers or in public speaking. The rules are what they are, and though they may change, I cannot imagine technology eroding them to the point that they no longer matter. After all, there are still teachers to teach the rules to these students.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the internet lingo that we are using today in this generation is not necessarily ruining our English language. Most phones now have a spell check feature that will change the misspelled words in text messages. Most kids that are in late high school and college know when it is appropriate to use the internet lingo and when to be more professional. In younger children in middle school they may not know how to turn off their internet lingo and continue to use it in school. One bad thing that I see about using cell phones and internet to communicate with people is that you avoid actually having conversations with people on the phone or face to face. I do agree with most of the things that were being said in this article. Now that most people use text messages and e-mail to communicate we can teach our future students to use this when it is the right time.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this it made me think a lot about our English language. I believe that texting is hurting our English language, and communication skills. I always find myself texting on the phone more than talking. I am afraid not for our generation but the generation after us. I am not worried as much about the writing skills of our generation. I very rarely hear about people using texting slang in an essay. I feel like texting slang is very useful in some situations. It is much easier texting or typing lol other than laugh out loud, or bbl other than be back later. All in all I would have to say that I agree and disagree. I agree that texting lingo isn’t helping our English language, but I also feel like it isn’t drastically hurting it either. However I do feel like texting and instant messaging is killing our communication skills.
ReplyDeleteI agree that my new texting/internet lingo has changed our language somewhat. I do these things on a everyday basis, but I know that these words or abbreviations are not things that should be used in a formal paper or in a formal setting. The first thing that caught my attention in the article talked about the use of apostrophes. I have to say I am guilty of doing this. When I am texting or am talking to someone online I never use them, so I catch myself doing this when I am typing something on the computer. I also relate a lot to the control section of this reading. Sometimes texting just seems easier, especially when you are not comfortable talking to a certain person. Caller ID is a huge thing with me. I am really bad about seeing a certain name come up on my phone and not answering the call. It sounds terrible, but its true, and of course there are also those names that come up that I can not answer fast enough!
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with this article 100%! We as a society have completely changed our language. However, we do know the fine line between text/instant message lingo, everyday talk and the correct language for writing papers. I find myself typing papers more than hand writing them for the simple fact that I am so used to typing, that it takes just minutes whereas hand writing a paper takes more time and it hurts my hand! I also find myself saying aloud the phrases ‘LOL’, ‘BRB’, ‘BTW’, ‘IDK’, ‘IDC’ and ‘OMG’ let alone texting or typing them! It is actually almost pathetic that I use these acronyms in real life conversations. It is even more pathetic that people still follow what I am saying. It is even a habit of mine to pretend to be on the phone, look through old texts, or even walk across the street when I do not want to communicate with another person. Silencing or ignoring calls is another habit of mine, I must admit. If I do not feel like conversing with someone, I will do whatever it takes to not do so. However, when I am speaking to an elder person, writing a term paper, or simply turning in an assignment I change that lingo to English language. I will, however, admit one more embarrassing habit dealing with this text/instant message lingo, I do find myself backspacing a lot while typing papers, on a count of I used the lingo instead of correct usage. All in all, the article hit this new ‘lingo’ right smack on the dot. It has changed the way we talk and type. I do believe, however, that most people know when it is right and when it is wrong.
ReplyDeleteI believe that I agree with the authors main points. This era has become and era of technology, but I believe that "most"(not all) people have learned when it is appropriate to use it and when it's not. I do find it annoying to here someone using online lingo in everyday, face to face conversations. However, these misuses are few and far between. I also see how the attitude of "whatever" has come about. Every day we see students care less and less about appropriate grammar. I myself have even fallen into this category at times. I don't necesarilly think that English is going down the tubes, but I do think that educators need to step up and take action against the "whatever attitude." Students need to be intrinsically motivated so that proper language is not something that is seen as "I have to do it this way," but "I want to do it this way because its correct."
ReplyDeleteI do agree with the primary argument Naomi S. Baron makes in her article. Internet lingo and text messaging really have only taken off in the last decade; text message mostly in the last three or four years. The word text message itself proves that this type of “lingo” is changing the English language somewhat. Only in the last couple years has the word ‘text’ been used as a verb. I’m sure if I would go back in time ten or twenty odd years and said to someone “Just text me the directions”, they wouldn’t have the slightest clue what I mean. Another part I agree with is, the about the reliance on spell check, I admit if I didn’t have spell check I would have many misspelled words and probably never realize this. Another section I agree with in the ‘control’ part is about how technology enhances our ability to manipulate our communication with others. I am guilty of using the phone call/ browsing through old text messages tricks to avoid conversation or even just to kill time while making myself look busy. Even though I am guilty myself of doing what was discussed in this article I agree that students already understand when particular styles of language are appropriate and when they are not for the most part.
ReplyDeleteI agree to the simple fact that text lingo is killing this generations language to a point. The fact that repetition sometimes becomes a habit is the worst part about the way people today use abbreviations and acronyms. The short cuts of words sometimes can through people off causing misspellings, and bad habits of using the shortened version of words on in appropriate occasions not meaning to. I do agree with Lenhart, Smith, & Macgill that most people do know the proper time to use the abbreviations. The importance of language should not be over looked for the simple fact it is a way a communication. This is a very important topic that if it is overlooked can make people look unprofessional and lazy. The technology has allowed people to communicate with friends a family easier and allows quick access. This to me is a good thing because I enjoy the technology. Although the fact that it is easy to access friends through email and text it is also easy to ignore someone calling through caller id. Depending on the use of the technology can have a positive or negative effect.
ReplyDeleteI consider myself one of those people who use lingo everyday in my text messages, instant messages, etc. In my opinion, I do not feel as if digital media has killed my language. I, like most others that use lingo, know when to use lingo and when to not. I know that if I am writing a paper for English I will not use lingo because there is a time and place for lingo. This comment is a great example of where I do not use lingo. If this were an instant message or text, I'm sure that I would not be using apostrophes, commas, or even capital letters for that matter. On the other hand, I also believe that texting has made it hard on teachers in the classroom. I can honestly say, with many teachers having my back, that many students do not pay attention during lectures because they are texting on their phones. So, I feel like digital media has not affected our attitude toward language but has affected our participation during lectures.
ReplyDeleteTo anyone who has ever read Chaucer, it’s clear that change in language over time is natural. The question is what effects the current changes will have. The changes occurring in language today seem to be for the purpose of convenience, such as shortening common phrases into abbreviations.
ReplyDeleteNew technology seems to be doing the work for us, leading to the “whatever” attitude. However I would have to argue that most people understand what language is appropriate in what context. Most of the people I associate with will cringe on those rare occasions when someone tries to use “LOL” in conversation. Although we’re all guilty of using abbreviations, we understand that they are not appropriate in school papers.
Okay I can see, to a degree, both sides of this issue. On the one hand I think the author has a good point, in that if you don't wish to talk to someone using 'lol speak' than you can easily block them on a messenger, hang up the phone, or not return the text. It's really, to a point, a very simple solution to the problem. However, a prime example of just what letting children get away with this type of butchering of a language can cause was actually found when I was browsing another site for amusement and stumbled across this gem of a resume letter, http://emailsfromcrazypeople.com/2009/11/25/youre-hire/ . This folks is what would concern me about the increasing use of 'lol speak'. True this young lady did not write LOL, BRB, or ROTFLMAO (although I did do a good bit of that after reading the resume), however she has no concept of how to write an appropriate resume, what language to use, or it seems any interest at all in using a spell checking program. Her resume in reality sounds and reads far more like a detailed text message, than anything that should ever be shown to a potential employer, and I have to wonder if perhaps this is due to the lack of spelling, grammar, and clarity of texts, messaging, and of course lol speak.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with the author’s argument that the attitude towards language is changing. I see many examples of this throughout my day. I see signs that students made and put on their doors spelling words wrong and using “texting lingo” and even in the classroom when I’m peer advising someone’s paper in class. There is a large amount of words that are misspelled. I also agree with the idea that we are becoming dependant on Spell check on the computer. There are countless papers that I have turned in that I thought were correct because there wasn’t an error on the page but once I got my assignment back there were multiple mistakes on words and grammar. I also type my blog posts on Microsoft Word to hopefully catch some mistakes that I made. I do think that the attitude towards language is changing but I do see people trying to make an effort to clarify and correct what they have written.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the Ms. Baron's arguemnet that language and the attitude towards language is changing. At first I did not agree with the more common use of "text" language. I believed that the use of accronyms was a result of laziness and a lack of motivation and encouraged the non-use of proper grammer and spelling skills. After reading the article I have come to terms that language is constantly evloving. I did not realize how often we us accronyms in our daily life, such as RSVP and ASAP. I think it is still important to teach proper spelling and grammer skills, and as long as we are able to put into proper context, "text" language is alright.
ReplyDeleteI think in a way the Digital Media is changing our language because, a lot of people don't communicate anymore unless it's through texting and so much slang is used today in text messages!.. but in a way we will always continue to use the English language when we are in a professional setting! Students today are so used to multi-tasking so we are expanded in our learning process and being able to know when to use the proper language.. when we are with certain people we have our own slang but if we are with more professional people we are going to use proper enlgish. Although if you are not careful you could end up using the slang in important documents when you least expect it.
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