| You only have to drive 20 yards down the road | | | | once 'cool' to type on text or email is now just 'so |
| before you come across a teenager either talking on | | | | last year' and it has moved on. There are levels of |
| their mobile or texting and downloading information | | | | texting within texting and it has developed into its |
| from another world onto their latest mobile gadget. | | | | own language with its own etiquette. |
| There's an app for this and there's an app for that. | | | | Levels of literacy and numeracy are reportedly poor |
| You will struggle to find a teenager who will leave | | | | in teens. You don't need statistics to point out these |
| home without their mobile or cell phone, whatever | | | | facts - you need only spend a few hours with a |
| you wish to call it, and you will struggle even further | | | | group of teenagers to realise that they place |
| to find a teenager who does not own a mobile | | | | importance on other things. Whilst able to design a |
| phone. | | | | perfect power point presentation with spectacular |
| Texting has become a frightening obsession for | | | | graphics, using a pre-packaged suite on a well-known |
| many young people and has seemingly become their | | | | platform, teens seem unable to find the time to |
| primary means of communication with their friends | | | | check their work for such things as spelling, grammar |
| and even family. They live in a world where | | | | and so on. The basics are most definitely dead. With |
| everything has to be relayed instantly and without | | | | so many people arguing that there is no longer a |
| the need to raise a voice or look someone in the | | | | need for a person to be able to spell for themselves |
| eye. | | | | because of spell checkers and predictive text, it |
| Two teenagers in the same room, the same class, | | | | seems that teenagers continue in ignorant bliss as to |
| the same train will think nothing of sending one | | | | the detrimental effects that texting is having on |
| another a text to let each other know how they are | | | | them and the long term effects of society. We are |
| feeling, where to meet or what they did the night | | | | even breeding a generation of teachers who aren't |
| before - not giving a it a second thought that they | | | | able to correct their pupils' work because they often |
| could just as easily greet one another with a friendly | | | | don't know any different either. |
| smile and speak to each other. | | | | Using text language means that teenagers are losing |
| It has become socially unacceptable for teenagers | | | | their ability to communicate effectively and |
| not to own a mobile phone. They communicate with | | | | articulately with others of all age groups and retain |
| one another on a level that has created a sub culture | | | | information for any length of time because they are |
| and a language which can only be understood by | | | | no longer required to. Why retain something that is at |
| them. Having said that, twenty or so years ago, | | | | your predisposal on a saved artificial memory? |
| teenagers had their own sub language in the spoken | | | | Learning the basic skills of life in the forms of literacy, |
| form anyway because teenagers need to set | | | | numeracy, communication and the art of social |
| themselves apart from their elders and exist in a | | | | interaction seem to be less and less fashionable and |
| world which is exclusive to them. | | | | worryingly considered less and less important. What a |
| Now, even text language has evolved and divided | | | | shame that it is only like to become worse before it |
| into sub languages over the last ten years. What was | | | | becomes any better. |