"OMG! cmiiw taht chik iz tcfc! w8in ol 4 me! WTH! code9 bbl"
If you can understand the above then you’re a tween or very close to one.
Translated it says: “Oh my God! Correct me if I’m wrong that chick is too close for comfort! Waiting online for me! What the heck! Parents are around be back later.”
This is the kind of thing kids text to one another. You’ll notice a few things. First of all, how did they think this stuff up and how do they understand each other? Is there a course somewhere they all take that requires a secret handshake and codeword only kids would know?
Second, that code9 thing is a little disconcerting (see also: POS—parent over shoulder, MOS—mom over shoulder, and PAW—parents are watching). Third, with the exception of the exclamation point, punctuation is irrelevant and spelling does not matter.
In fact, it’s as though they purposely misspell words, like ‘taht’ instead of ‘that.’ It’s the same number of letters but switched around. And ‘chik’ instead of ‘chick.’ Is one more letter too much trouble, really?
It is no wonder some say kids today can’t spell. In most aspects of their lives they don’t have to. In fact, it’s much cooler to creatively misspell a word, even if it makes the fogies cringe.
The strict rules of grammar have not been taught in schools for years and it shows. In fact, I am guilty of bending the rules as well. As I write this, three sentences are currently underlined in green and I have no intention of changing them. Why? Because in the interest of creating a narrative the rules must be bent (there I go again).
A research team in the Netherlands agrees. Two years ago, a bunch of Dutch researchers studied the emails exchanged among children aged ten to twelve. They decided that texting is educational, even if it is sloppy, because it enhances the children’s ability to tell stories and write narratives.
Heck, even Shakespeare couldn’t spell and he’s considered the greatest playwright in history. Well, to be fair, in his day there were no strict rules. People spelled things phonetically. Kind of like kids are doing today. Maybe they’re on to something.
However, I think in the interest of clarity and flow, punctuation must make a comeback. At least until us cringing fogies die off. Then go ahead and write: 2b orn2b, taht iz t3h ?
