Comments on: How texting may be affecting writing behaviour? http://www.fadetoplay.com/2007/02/08/how-texting-may-be-affecting-writing-behaviour/ Phillip Jeffrey is a UBC PhD student (MAGIC), HCT lab member, Gamer, and Photographer. He is exploring how play environments can be platforms for changing the world. Blogging about new media since 2005. Tue, 09 Mar 2010 16:52:42 -0800 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.5 hourly 1 By: Indie Bloggers » Anything You Say Can And Will Be Held Against You, But Somehow You Don’t Mind http://www.fadetoplay.com/2007/02/08/how-texting-may-be-affecting-writing-behaviour/comment-page-1/#comment-2930 Indie Bloggers » Anything You Say Can And Will Be Held Against You, But Somehow You Don’t Mind Tue, 13 Feb 2007 17:34:46 +0000 http://www.fadetoplay.com/2007/02/08/how-texting-may-be-affecting-writing-behaviour/#comment-2930 [...] My friend Phillip told me about this article called “Say Everything” in New York Magazine. It’s an article about how comfortable young people are with revealing information about themselves on the internet. If you want to read Phillip’s take on it (and/or the comments on his blog from an educator cited in the article wherein I am legitimized as a “freelance scientist, educator, artist, model and social engineer*“), check it out here. But I want to talk about a slightly different aspect of the article. [...] [...] My friend Phillip told me about this article called “Say Everything” in New York Magazine. It’s an article about how comfortable young people are with revealing information about themselves on the internet. If you want to read Phillip’s take on it (and/or the comments on his blog from an educator cited in the article wherein I am legitimized as a “freelance scientist, educator, artist, model and social engineer*“), check it out here. But I want to talk about a slightly different aspect of the article. [...]

]]> By: Cynthia http://www.fadetoplay.com/2007/02/08/how-texting-may-be-affecting-writing-behaviour/comment-page-1/#comment-2928 Cynthia Sun, 11 Feb 2007 11:21:09 +0000 http://www.fadetoplay.com/2007/02/08/how-texting-may-be-affecting-writing-behaviour/#comment-2928 How should educators respond when work is submitted using IM-speaking or text-talk? The expectations for an assignment need to be made clear when it is assigned. If you are teaching English grammar, then you have certain expectations for the ability of your students and what you want their outcomes to be. You need to clearly explain to your students what they are supposed to learn so they will hold themselves accountable. If you are teaching creative writing you will have different expectations. Students should be taught to understand the viewpoint of the reader. They should also understand that they will be judged by their communications. They may reject that person's judgment, but they need to understand that they WILL be judged. Part of the problem students have today is that they don't understand their audiences. Many have no concept that what is appropriate in one situation is inappropriate in another. One case in point is their use of vulgarity with no regard for those in the room who may find it offensive. Educators also need to understand their audiences and their needs. Those students who will be taking the SATs will need to be able to use proper English. All students will need to be able to communicate clearly at some point in their lives with people who don't understand their slang or jargon. There is a time and place for everything. As our students need to understand that, we also need to understand when it is the time and place to accept IM-speak and when it is not. How should educators respond when work is submitted using IM-speaking or text-talk? The expectations for an assignment need to be made clear when it is assigned. If you are teaching English grammar, then you have certain expectations for the ability of your students and what you want their outcomes to be. You need to clearly explain to your students what they are supposed to learn so they will hold themselves accountable. If you are teaching creative writing you will have different expectations. Students should be taught to understand the viewpoint of the reader. They should also understand that they will be judged by their communications. They may reject that person’s judgment, but they need to understand that they WILL be judged.
Part of the problem students have today is that they don’t understand their audiences. Many have no concept that what is appropriate in one situation is inappropriate in another. One case in point is their use of vulgarity with no regard for those in the room who may find it offensive.
Educators also need to understand their audiences and their needs. Those students who will be taking the SATs will need to be able to use proper English. All students will need to be able to communicate clearly at some point in their lives with people who don’t understand their slang or jargon. There is a time and place for everything. As our students need to understand that, we also need to understand when it is the time and place to accept IM-speak and when it is not.

]]> By: 2 Cents Worth » IM-Speak in Class http://www.fadetoplay.com/2007/02/08/how-texting-may-be-affecting-writing-behaviour/comment-page-1/#comment-2922 2 Cents Worth » IM-Speak in Class Fri, 09 Feb 2007 09:49:31 +0000 http://www.fadetoplay.com/2007/02/08/how-texting-may-be-affecting-writing-behaviour/#comment-2922 [...] University of British Columbia student, Philip Jeffery, wrote a blog article yesterday (How texting may be affecting writing behavior?) about this issue along with our children’s willingness to expose themselves online by revealing personal information.  It was a very balanced piece of writing, as Jeffery is a Masters student in the area of Interdisciplinary Studies, concentrating on computer supported cooperative work, with a broader interest in… ..pervasive games, CSCW, cultural anthropology (ethnography), digital environments (e.g. del.icio.us, Flickr, YouTube), and mixed realities (using mobile techologies in physical spaces). [...] [...] University of British Columbia student, Philip Jeffery, wrote a blog article yesterday (How texting may be affecting writing behavior?) about this issue along with our children’s willingness to expose themselves online by revealing personal information.  It was a very balanced piece of writing, as Jeffery is a Masters student in the area of Interdisciplinary Studies, concentrating on computer supported cooperative work, with a broader interest in… ..pervasive games, CSCW, cultural anthropology (ethnography), digital environments (e.g. del.icio.us, Flickr, YouTube), and mixed realities (using mobile techologies in physical spaces). [...]

]]> By: Beth http://www.fadetoplay.com/2007/02/08/how-texting-may-be-affecting-writing-behaviour/comment-page-1/#comment-2921 Beth Fri, 09 Feb 2007 09:46:01 +0000 http://www.fadetoplay.com/2007/02/08/how-texting-may-be-affecting-writing-behaviour/#comment-2921 OK, David, I can see your point. I neglected something in my previous comment - the courses I've taught at university have been science courses. So when I said that "I think that in the context of a college or university paper, standard English spelling should be used" I should have been more clear that I was talking about the science papers in my course specifically. And, as you point out, when I write for scientific publications, I write in an accepted style for the scientific community, which requires the use of standard English spelling. So this is what I try to teach my students. Of course, if I were teaching a different subject, or teaching students in my courses about communicating with a different audience, IM type spelling may be totally acceptable. Point taken. =) OK, David, I can see your point. I neglected something in my previous comment – the courses I’ve taught at university have been science courses. So when I said that “I think that in the context of a college or university paper, standard English spelling should be used” I should have been more clear that I was talking about the science papers in my course specifically. And, as you point out, when I write for scientific publications, I write in an accepted style for the scientific community, which requires the use of standard English spelling. So this is what I try to teach my students. Of course, if I were teaching a different subject, or teaching students in my courses about communicating with a different audience, IM type spelling may be totally acceptable. Point taken. =)

]]> By: David Warlick http://www.fadetoplay.com/2007/02/08/how-texting-may-be-affecting-writing-behaviour/comment-page-1/#comment-2920 David Warlick Fri, 09 Feb 2007 09:26:18 +0000 http://www.fadetoplay.com/2007/02/08/how-texting-may-be-affecting-writing-behaviour/#comment-2920 I respectfully disagree with Beth, who describes herself in her blog as "..a freelance scientist, educator, artist, model and social engineer". We tend to give writing assignments with the assumption that the pinnacle goal of all children is to become a college professor. We seem to want to train our children to grow up to be scholars. There is history to this, where there was a time when you went to college to be a scholar. Most other occupations were achieved through apprenticeships. When Beth writes to her scientist friends, she will write in a style and with a vocabulary that is different than what and how she will write to her model friends. In writing about social engineering she will speak from the same creative energy as with art, but the voice will still be different. My point is that we should be teaching students to communicate with audiences in order to accomplish goals. The style of communication, the vocabulary, and even the spelling will depend on the audience and the goal. What I was trying to express in the AP interview, that resulted in the <a href="http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/1700AP_TechBit_IM_Speak.html" rel="nofollow">Seatle PI article</a> (and others) is that we should respect todays children for the trails they are blazing through this new frontier of information and communication. 2¢ Worth I respectfully disagree with Beth, who describes herself in her blog as “..a freelance scientist, educator, artist, model and social engineer”. We tend to give writing assignments with the assumption that the pinnacle goal of all children is to become a college professor. We seem to want to train our children to grow up to be scholars. There is history to this, where there was a time when you went to college to be a scholar. Most other occupations were achieved through apprenticeships.

When Beth writes to her scientist friends, she will write in a style and with a vocabulary that is different than what and how she will write to her model friends. In writing about social engineering she will speak from the same creative energy as with art, but the voice will still be different.

My point is that we should be teaching students to communicate with audiences in order to accomplish goals. The style of communication, the vocabulary, and even the spelling will depend on the audience and the goal.

What I was trying to express in the AP interview, that resulted in the Seatle PI article (and others) is that we should respect todays children for the trails they are blazing through this new frontier of information and communication.

2¢ Worth

]]> By: Beth http://www.fadetoplay.com/2007/02/08/how-texting-may-be-affecting-writing-behaviour/comment-page-1/#comment-2919 Beth Fri, 09 Feb 2007 04:28:43 +0000 http://www.fadetoplay.com/2007/02/08/how-texting-may-be-affecting-writing-behaviour/#comment-2919 Call me an old fogey, but I think that in the context of a college or university paper, standard English spelling should be used. IM-speak is fine for IMing and text messaging, where time/characters are limited, but it isn't necessary in a university paper. It reminds me an English TA I know that had several papers submitted in which the students spelled the word "ludicrous" as "Ludacris." Call me an old fogey, but I think that in the context of a college or university paper, standard English spelling should be used. IM-speak is fine for IMing and text messaging, where time/characters are limited, but it isn’t necessary in a university paper. It reminds me an English TA I know that had several papers submitted in which the students spelled the word “ludicrous” as “Ludacris.”

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