detriment of English grammar. The process of spelling words for a friend via cellphone is in itself quite annoying. Of course, for the cellphone, one has to
consider the small screen, the number of repetitions when punching in each letter and in general, the need to make the
message short and concise. Limited characters on the cellphone when messaging, or "tweeting", have exponentially fuelled the trend to shorten words
in a bid to save the agony of having to spell out every single word. This trend has slowly infiltrated high-school classrooms and universities and has even spread to everyone who owns a
cellphone or similar communication devices. For instance: "IYO TXT ng ≈ Gd 4 or NME of GMR" will mean: "In your opinion, is texting good for or the enemy of grammar." Bradley Izaks, the Head of Department of Languages at Concordia High School mentions that technology is improving and
there is probably no way to stop it. "Learners must be made aware of this situation from junior grades and in all schools they should follow the government
cellphone rule. "It is very disturbing because in essays, learners are so used to texting each other on the phone, they inadvertently put in
"Coz/ Cuz (for because), 1ne (one)", which is highly unacceptable," he said. Professor Jairos Kangira, Head of Department of Languages and Literature Studies at the University of Namibia (Unam)
concurs that the culture is slowly corrupting the English language. "It's true that short forms of SMS have impacted negatively on spelling and the way students construct their sentences. In
other words, what they are doing is now spelling words using these short forms and using informal words and informal
structures which they get from the social media, especially Facebook or SMS. "In most cases, they forget that they are writing an academic paper or academic essay and they resort to using that kind
of language. "This makes the English language lecturers despondent especially when we want sentences to be grammatically correct.
It's not only in English but across the curricula that this has developed into a formidable problem," said Kangira. He insisted
that not only cellphones influence this trend, but the increasing social media. "They (students) need to realize that when they are writing an assignment, they must shift from using language as if they
are talking to their friends, to using it properly. Even in the examination, you see them doing that, which is unacceptable,"
he urged. Another university lecturer who chose to remain anonymous said "The English language is being impacted. We use
shorthand when we text because it makes life easier, then we revert to it now and then without realizing this. But we caution our students not to use that informality. "We are creatures of habit. Every now and then when tasked with writing a business letter, we might fall prey. I don't
think people purposefully use this language when they write formally. I'd imagine its something that creeps in by accident
and it is habit forming. "Very few people don't have a cellphone when you look around so it's obvious that people constantly SMSing can easily fall
prey," said the unnamed scholar. Interestingly, Dr Talita Smit a lecturer in Language and Literature Studies at Unam says the practice is a "solidarity
language between them (the people who use the SMS language,) and we shouldn't discourage it completely when they are
talking to themselves". "They must know when to use it and when not to use it as far as academic work is concerned. It is the role of the educator
to emphasise this. We see that when habits are discouraged, at times they are actually encouraged. It's a trend that is
growing, hence it is a modern version of language, therefore we must accept the fact that it exists. "It will never go away but just develop more and more. We can rather embrace it than cut it out. Therefore, it is our duty
to point out where it is appropriate and where it is inappropriate," she reasoned. Another scholar, Ingrid Mina Fandrych, in her journal of Language and Communication in 2007, states: "Modern scientific
jargon makes use of metaphors and acronyms, which are more easily absorbed back into the mainstream vocabulary than
the neoclassical formations of the past. In the last decade, computer and Internet-related terms have had a considerable
impact on the English lexicon." This suggests that perhaps modern English or slang is somewhat similar and easier to assimilate into language today than
in the past. The consequences of undermining this phenomenon could be very dire, especially considering that if you are in secondary
school and you want to apply for a place at university, as some require you write a formal application letter: Do not make
the mistake of including XLNT (excellent) or GR8 (great). If you escape with it, throughout your college career you will obviously have to write essays, and ultimately, when you
write an application letter in search of a job, such a mistake would drop you from the top to the bottom of the pile. A while back there were numerous articles highlighting that the age of e-mail was surely going to 'annihilate' snail mail as
they called it, or rather post mail. Will this similarity occur as far as the English language is concerned? The levels of concentration on cellphones and other electronic devices that are capable of Internet access play a part in this
'evolution'. "I can confess that whenever I am at a gathering, event or place that I feel uncomfortable, the first thing I want to do is
get on my cellphone and engage in a world that has no emotions," Fandrych said. If you don't understand what your children are saying when they SMS you? Here are some hints: AFAIK: As far as I know AFK: Away from keyboard A3: Any time, anywhere, any place BRB: Be right back BTDT: Been there done that BTW: By the way CID: Consider it done CMI: Cannot make it DND: Do not disturb FWIW: For what it's worth GMTA: Great minds think alike IMHO: In my honest/humble opinion IOW: In other words KISS: Keep it simple, stupid LOL: Laughing out loud
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