Tech-ified English?

What technology does to the English language

Our exclusive Q&A with the two veterans in the education scene, Patricia Koh and Julia Gabriel, continues...

My tween/teen communicates via SMS a lot and she’s even used SMS language in her compositions! What can I do to stop this nonsense?

Pat Koh: Most children model after their peers and their parents. If his peers reply messages using short forms, it would be strange for your child to reply using complete sentences.

Most teenagers will rebel when they are forced to change and will become even more defiant. The best way to understand a teenager and to encourage him to do the right thing is to stop finding fault with him. Try not to pick on such issues which will are not crucial to his character and learning styles.

However, you can continue to sms him in complete sentences if you like, so that he knows that you are not used to answering in sms language. Soon, he may end up replying you in complete sentences.

As for the compositions he writes, please leave this to the teachers to deal with him. If the teachers in school are not making any effort to change his writing style, it would be better for you to speak with his teachers about your concerns. If he continues to fail in his compositions, he will soon learn to write sensibly.

You can also provide lots of good reading materials for your child to read and many opportunities to write without the fear of failing or making mistakes. This way your child will gain greater confidence in his speaking, reading and writing skills.

Julia Gabriel: SMS, email, blog sites and other forms of technology are not nonsense! They represent the means by which young people communicate with each other. Far from wiping this out, we adults need to learn to communicate this way, or our children will stop communicating with us. Young people are the ones who create language evolution for the next generation. So let's accept it, celebrate its range, diversity and efficiency, and then make sure our children know the difference between the language of text and technology and the Standard English they need for compositions, examinations, interviews and other formal situations. Children need exposure to many styles of language to help them differentiate, discover what is important in each situation and build communication skills suitable for adult life in a global world that advances at a pace they must keep up with.

Article from Family.sg/ Education