The text message “JW, WAYD?” from a recent college graduate
sent me scrambling for translation. Sure, I text, but it’s not life absorbing
like it is for perpetually thumbing teens and young adults. After all, to hit
communication bullseye, the messenger must be understood.
Does the limited acceptance of the acronym for “Just
wondering, what are you doing?” signal an unconscious aim for communication’s
abyss? Not necessarily, according to the Text4Science project brains who shrug
shortcut laziness for creativity and imagination in language use.
As a writer, I’m all for giving creative props, yet, I’m unconvinced
that texting will drive the literary skills development as researchers at the
University of Tasmania in Australia proclaim. Although science may lend
credence to texting as a learning tool, we can’t feign ignorance to the
probability of the student’s inability to differentiate when usage is
appropriate. Most teens and young adults just aren’t that savvy such that job
applicants and employees of the youthful variety have been known to sprinkle
cover letters and professional emails with textese.
Seemingly, the message that there is a time and place for
everything has been lost on this Anything Goes Generation. With the rising
acceptance of pajamas in some public schools (http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/editorials/ct-edit-pajamas-20120122,0,1735091.story)
and profanity as routine language, educators are not only challenged with
locking down creative ways to enhance learning but commanding standards that
were once instilled in the home.
It may be the age of the microwave, however, self-respect
and respect for others should always dictate behavior and a time and place for
everything remains. Sorry dudes and dudettes, the language spawned from texting
was never intended to be all purpose-applied.
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