Where did all that grammar go? - W5O

Remember the days of Schoolhouse Rock? It was a series of animated musical short films that aired on Saturday mornings aimed at educating kids.  They covered topics such as grammar, science, economics and history.  There were films like “Conjunction Junction, What’s Your Function”, “Interjections!”, and “Grammar Pronouns”.  But, what happened to all those English lessons we had?  Do they apply in the world of social media?

As we recently discussed in class, the way we communicate has continued to change over time, and with it so has the English language.  Through our use of social media and technology, as well as our need for immediacy, we have shortened our sentences and created many new words.  Some recent additions to the Oxford Dictionary are tweetups, hashtag, tag cloud, and unfriend. 

While the English language has always evolved, the speed at which things are changing is incredible.  In the article, “The Impact of Social Media on the English Language”, the author states, “New variations on words and acronyms are posted via Twitter and other microblogs, on popular blogs, through text messaging and more. Prior to these social technologies, when print, television and radio was the only mass communication medium, such evolution of words and how they are used took a long time. Not anymore.”  As Giles stated, it is not only words that are changing; we now have acronyms like brb, lol, ttyl, that are replacing entire sentences.  We can also communicate how we are feeling through symbols inserted into messages.  Most phones also come equipped with common quick insert texts like, on my way, thanks, and goodnight so that we don't even have to type the sentence.

So have all these changes ruined the English language?  Some academics believe that social media is the death of the English language, but I believe it is just another form of communicating.  I think the problem exists when online English is used to replace offline English.  You must know when it is appropriate to use which form otherwise, you will create confusion, and a possible breakdown in communication may occur.  Also, you must know your audience!  Not everyone is up-to-date on the latest acronyms or uses of this "new" language.

The other problem associated with "online English" is the increased risk of misunderstanding.  When you can not see or hear the person, you may misinterpret their meaning.  We communicate through facial expressions and body language which is lost in the tech talk.

With all the changes that have occurred, and with more technology to come, I wonder what the English language will look like in 15 years?  Will teachers use these new words or acronyms in their curriculum?  It will be interesting to see the long-term affects of social media on the English language. 

Sources:  http://www.google.com/; http://www.mediabadger.com/