TextingEmily Kaibel-Moore

Introduction

Youth today use ‘text talk’ or ‘chat-speak’

Text messaging – the exchange of a brief written message from a mobile phone to another

Most predominant ‘texters’ are Gen Y and Z

Specialised Vocabulary in Texts

Many popular abbreviations that are widely understood

Autocorrect can discourage use

Common abbreviations include:- replacing the beginning or

ending of a word with a number(e.g. 2day, gr8)- Words or phrases

shortened to acronyms (e.g. LOL, OMG, BTW)

- Removal of conjunctions(e.g. “I’ll be home soon”

becomes “home soon”

Lexical Growth

Words that have been around for centuries now have new meanings

Text – a body of writing and a message being sent to someone

Menu – a list of meals served at a restaurant and a list of options on a phone

Contact – the act of touching something and a person whose number is saved onto the phone

The Effect of Context on Appropriate Language Choices

Situation of person can determine the style of language they use

Language choice can vary depending on who the message is being sent to

The purpose of the message will influence language

- e.g. a reminder sent to a parent could be “remember train tickets” whereas a

new message would be “Could you please buy a train ticket on your way home tonight?”

People with Smart phones are more likely to use full words than someone with a standard mobile phone

The Role of Language on Establishing Individual or Group Identity

Language choices can reflect an individuals personality or relationship with the other person

Message being sent to a friend would be different to one sent to a parent

Person may want to be seen as cool by their mates but responsible by their parents

Language choices are dictated by the identity they want to create for themselves

Positives and Negatives of Texting as a Communication Choice

Capitalisation, punctuation and grammar have been swapped for a less stable style of writing

Negatives:- may cause vocabulary of youth to shrink or not develop- contribute to youth having more trouble expressing themselves with

extended vocabulary

Positives:- students know when and when not to use casual and formal

language- youth may have a more extended vocabulary from being able to

switch between communication styles- speeds up writing skills by taking away the difficulties of the English language- can liberate people with learning difficulties communication skills - discreet- less expensive than voice calls

Thank you for listening!

Bibliography

Andre, (2008) “Six Reasons to Use Text Messages Instead of Voice Calls” http://tools-for-thought.com/2008/07/11/six-reasons-to-use-text-messages-instead-of-voice-calls/ (24 March 2012)

O’Neill, Nancy, “10 Reasons Why People Text Instead of Talk” http://onedotadvice.wordpress.com/2011/07/25/10-reasons-why-people-text-instead-of-talk/ (24 March 2012)

Wikipedia, (26 March 2012) “Text messaging” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Text_messaging (visited 27 March 2012)

Moccia, Tom (20 October 2010) “Nielsen Documents Who Texts the Most” http://www.technobuffalo.com/news/nielsen-documents-who-texts-the-most/ (28 March 2012)

Pauze, Jeremy (15 February 2011) “Texting and its Effects on the English Language and on Childs Learning” http://oldsmunicipallibrary.blogspot.com.au/2011/02/texting-and-its-effects-on-english.html (28 March 2012)