The one thing I realize with the youth of today

[Alex K]

2 bad, U lose, lolz

PS -- It's not the generation itself; it's the parents who don't involve themselves in the education of their children. My son can textspeak, and can write shimmering essays for his university classes, because his mother and I decided when he was born that he would not get baby-talk, and we each kept a good dictionary in our houses. I read to him nightly the three days a week I had him, and by four, he read to me -- he had read Call of the Wild by five, and Lord of the Rings by eight. He still reads daily, for pleasure -- stuff like The National Interest, Raw Story, and less often nowadays, books.

Parental investment is key to a child's learning. You're seeing the results of a generation of parents accustomed to treating the computer as a babysitter, I think.

Yes, exactly.
We also speak (admittedly sometimes a bit cutesy) standard language to our daughter, at her daycare she even gets some exposure to English - she's now reached the age where she starts forming her first words.

Somehow, I myself grew up speaking proper standard German as well as our local not-so-subtle dialect - telegram texting style is just another dialect for a special application. It is the parents' responsibility to ensure that it doesn't remain the only one!

[abaris]

Parental investment is key to a child's learning. You're seeing the results of a generation of parents accustomed to treating the computer as a babysitter, I think.

Which, since you and me are roughly the same generation, gets more and more difficult by the year. I'm not sure, if this is just personal perception, but when I grew up, this world seemed friendlier and slower. At least to us in the Western world. There are more and more people barely able to scratch a living, even when working two or three jobs. And that's certainly not personal perception. That's a reality. These people, understandably have less time and less patience at their hands.

We all had our issues when being teens or young adults and these keep changing with the times. What worries me more is the absence of dreams or ideals, according to recent polls. When I was growing up, we wanted to change the world, outworldly as that may seem. Todays youngsters, in their majority, strive to make money by any means possible.

That's what's worrying me more than any textspeech ever could.

[Regina]

I know for myself, I do love finding big words for things. My Dad always complimented me as a kid when I found "a good word" for something and it encouraged me to use more colourful language. In that respect I strongly agree with Thump, it's a parenting thing.

I actually can't write in "text speak" unless I'm really thinking about it (but I can understand it easily). Because of the way I learned I always write texts in full, standard English. I do think it's good practice too tbh, prepares you for when you really need it.

One thing that always kills me is when native English speakers (not people who aren't native) get "your" and "you're", and "there", "their" and "they're" mixed up. We all do it occasionally as a typo, but people who actually consistently get them fucked up and don't know the difference. This is basic elementary stuff, you should have known this since you were like 7.

[abaris]

This is basic elementary stuff, you should have known this since you were like 7.

I wouldn't hold it against anyone. I'm not a native speaker but I know perfectly well how to use these words. I'm making the mistake by typing too quickly and if I don't feel sufficiently ashamed, I don't even bother to correct myself when noticing to have done it again.

We even had a thread on that some time ago.

[Alex K]

We all had our issues when being teens or young adults and these keep changing with the times. What worries me more is the absence of dreams or ideals, according to recent polls. When I was growing up, we wanted to change the world, outworldly as that may seem. Todays youngsters, in their majority, strive to make money by any means possible.

That's what's worrying me more than any textspeech ever could.

Yes, indeed. I would guess that you grew up during a time when the idealism of the space age was fading, but environmental&peace movements had their peak? I marched against Pershings when I was 6 or so, you're what, 10, 15 years older than me?

[abaris]

I marched against Pershings when I was 6 or so, you're what, 10, 15 years older than me?

Exactly the time. I was between 17 and 19 back then. And, what has been a big local issue, against the plans for Hainburg. An environmental issue, since they wanted to build a power plant there.

[Thumpalumpacus]

Parental investment is key to a child's learning. You're seeing the results of a generation of parents accustomed to treating the computer as a babysitter, I think.

Which, since you and me are roughly the same generation, gets more and more difficult by the year. I'm not sure, if this is just personal perception, but when I grew up, this world seemed friendlier and slower. At least to us in the Western world. There are more and more people barely able to scratch a living, even when working two or three jobs. And that's certainly not personal perception. That's a reality. These people, understandably have less time and less patience at their hands.

His mother and I both worked, at least until she was stricken with cancer and went on disability -- her chemotherapy brought on lupus.

We all had our issues when being teens or young adults and these keep changing with the times. What worries me more is the absence of dreams or ideals, according to recent polls. When I was growing up, we wanted to change the world, outworldly as that may seem. Todays youngsters, in their majority, strive to make money by any means possible.

That's what's worrying me more than any textspeech ever could.

I think adult cynicism has finally seeped down into youth. It was only a matter of time, once the hippies turned in their signs for mortgages.

[LastPoet]

Their vocabulary is severely limited thanks to texting.

Do you consider mastery of english (your own language) A sign of intelligence. And what are you? 36?

Lol at the perfect dunning kruger test subject. I will have fries with that and I doubt you would have the fervor to do your meager job as a competent person. But that is just me. So yeah, kindly fuck yourself. Learn that empathy is sometimes to be able to take a punch after getting a staight right into your face. Tell me, Mr Novelist. Is your work as a novelist anything of worth?

[abaris]

Do you consider mastery of english (your own language) A sign of intelligence.

You know, we have that too. In different languages, although text speech is largely english. If you can't move beyond that it's certainly an absence of education. Which I'm not holding agaiinst the ones doing it, but against our educational systems and society at large. There are various studies showing that youngsters, after finishing school, aren't able to understand what they read. Hence, they're perfect material to feed the unemployment line. That got worse within the last few decades.

[paulpablo]

Their vocabulary is severely limited thanks to texting.

Do you consider mastery of english (your own language) A sign of intelligence. And what are you? 36?

Lol at the perfect dunning kruger test subject. I will have fries with that and I doubt you would have the fervor to do your meager job as a competent person. But that is just me. So yeah, kindly fuck yourself. Learn that empathy is sometimes to be able to take a punch after getting a staight right into your face. Tell me, Mr Novelist. Is your work as a novelist anything of worth?

I think mastery even of your own language is definitely a sign of intelligence.  It involves communication and a good application of knowledge.

That's not to say that people who use text speak are necessarily stupid either, it could be laziness or intentionally dumbing down to fit in.