spk eng! hErd rownd d cuntrE mo & mo dEz dAz, w d immigrant “prob” bt how lng b4 we aL wiL find it neceSrE 2 Lern a nu, RitN lngwij o b deemed illiterate?

I bet, if you read that without needing to consult a text-message dictionary, you’re maybe under thirty. The misspelling of proper English has always been a pet peeve of mine. Many people just aren’t spellers and I’m not rude enough to criticize them but it puzzles and dismays me twelve years of education doesn’t rectify this. Some even go on to college…and graduate…with less than perfect spelling skills. Now, I’m appalled to learn that text message abbreviations/phonetics are beginning to be accepted for school papers??! For those who are “spelling challenged” I’ve always said that ‘as long as the message is clear afforded a pass but this scares me:

Beginning this year, New Zealand high school students may use text speak on national exams, meaning they won’t lose points if they replace words with popular abbreviations, such as 2 for “to” or “l8″ for “late.”

New Zealand is the first country I’ve heard of allowing…nay, perhaps encouraging…this means of communicating and that rather surprises me. Maybe there are others but I have to wonder (heaven preserve us)…how long before we follow suit?

Oh, weL… sun. & a shhh dA, gueS I best go try find an on-line tutorial, hone my cmUnik8shn skiLz & Lern a nu lngwij. aftR aL, Ive a resume 2 wrte. Catch U aL l8r!

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