The grammar of texting: do writing teachers need to re-visit how they teach punctuation?

Submitted by David Rosen on Sat, 09/05/2020 - 09:50
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Hello writing teaching colleagues,

Do you teach "Every sentence ends with a period." ? Do you explain that a period, along with a capital letter beginning a sentence, makes it easier for readers to distinguish one sentence from another? I do. However, we may need to re-examine this.

This three-minute piece on National Public Radio (NPR) on Saturday, September 5th, explains why. The sentence full-stop punctuation rule does certainly still apply in formal writing, but we may need to explain that "a period at the end of every sentence" applies to formal writing, not necessarily to all informal writing. In texting, for example, a very popular way of writing from a cellphone all over the world, a period at the end of a sentence is often not needed, especially if there is only one sentence, and it can be misunderstood.

Consider this answer to this texted question, for example:

"On your way?"

"yes"

Now consider the same answer with a period.

"yes." To many, especially younger people, that has a different meaning. A period expresses exasperation, frustration, or anger. Something like, "yes, I am (It's not my fault I'm late. Get off my case!)"

The short NPR piece gives details.

What are your thoughts? If you text, do you always end sentences with a period? Have you ever considered that this full-stop might be mis-communicating? Are there other formal grammar rules that should be disregarded in informal writing, in particular when texting? Do you want to raise with your students, if you haven't, a discussion topic about this? If you have had this discussion with your students, or with your children or other young people, what have you learned about their punctuation expectations when they informally text?

David J. Rosen

 

 

Comments

Thanks for sharing this fascinating NPR story David!

It seems like the period at the end of the sentence issue is a generational divide. I had to consult an insider into the younger generation culture, also known as my 19-year-old daughter Emily. She said, 'I see it more as a formal/informal issue versus a harshness one. My friends use emojis in our texts to communicate tone.' Emily used this example text: 'Ugh, so much homework [tongue sticking out emoji].' She typically does not use periods/commas/capital letters in her texts. Emily did say that she and her friends would interpret a one word text with punctuation and no other context as harsh.

Since most of my texts go to my 50+ year old peer group, they understand my meaning. I do use proper grammar/punctuation in my texts.

I will echo David's questions here:

What are your thoughts? If you text, do you always end sentences with a period? Have you ever considered that this full-stop might be mis-communicating? Are there other formal grammar rules that should be disregarded in informal writing, in particular when texting? Do you want to raise with your students, if you haven't, a discussion topic about this? If you have had this discussion with your students, or with your children or other young people, what have you learned about their punctuation expectations when they informally text?

Thanks in advance for your input!

Steve Schmidt

Moderator, LINCS Reading and Writing CoP

Hello colleagues, I, too, recently became more aware of the distinctions made when informally texting. When I heard the story, I had to check my texts to see what my own behavior has been. I discovered that I usually have not used a period when texting with friends and family although when texting with students, I have tended to use a period. This behavior was not in my conscious awareness, which is quite interesting to me! 

Discussing the differences between formal and informal language is usually an engaging topic to bring to class whether we are focused on spoken language or written language, e.g., emailing a friend vs. emailing at work. The prevalence of texting opens up another avenue to explore with learners. I'd love to hear more about how teachers have approached formal and informal language.

Thanks for sharing this NPR story, David.

Take care, Susan Finn Miller

Moderator, English Language Acquisition and Teaching & Learning CoP