Loss of Grammer in written langauge

It has taken me YEARS to use "r" & "u" and all of those shortcuts. The only reason that I'm using them now is because of character limits on text messaging. I either have too much to say, or I'm spelling everything out fully, so I run out of room and have to back up to figure out where I can shorten it. I do, however, like the "lol" & "roflmao" stuff because it really shows the emotion that one is experiencing. And particularly, "IMHO", since it really is an unnecessary interjection to a sentence which I do use frequently. My biggest problem is that I use slang such as "gonna'" or "helluva lotta". But I think that's mostly depending on the tone of my writing. And that brings up another point. Webster needs to stop adding slang into the dictionary. The more people understand it as a proper word (which is what dictionaries are for), the more people will tend to use it and think that it IS proper. aloha!

I honestly don't believe kids are getting the proper education today. It's either that or they're just not paying attention. It seems like there is no emphasis on correct spelling, punctuation or grammar at all. I'm sure there are some who were forced to leave school for one reason or another before they could complete their education. However, I just hate to see a long paragraph of run-on sentences without absolutely any punctuation, not even a period at the very end. I receive thank you notes from nieces, nephews and neighborhood kids that have the worst misspellings, etc. I can misspell words at times and have been known to have a few typos because my mind works faster than my fingers at times. When my grandkids send me an email or IM and I can't understand all their shortcuts, I just type "Say what?" and that's it. But they think it's "kewl". I have no idea how this trend can be fixed. We sure can't go around correcting people all the time. That's just rude.

I am such a perfectionist when it comes to my writing, and this drives me absolutely nuts. I have seen some responses on here that I have had to read 3+ times and still haven't a clue what they are saying.

We learn the proper way to use the English language in school, why do you think they call it grammar school? Later on as time goes on, the lazier we all become and it's not an issue if proper grammer is used unless you are in a job that requires communication of some kind. I admit it, I am guilty of it too :)

it all depends on where u use the wrong grammer and spellings. obviously if u r typing in an informal place such as a blog, then u dont need to write the full spellings, but if u r writing a petition or application...etc u have to use correct grammer.

The problem is that most people are so used to software and computers correcting their mistakes for them. Spellcheck is a perfect example. I however stride to make myself known for being educated by a public school system that has an English department. I believe the solution is to get more people properly educated on how to speak. Maybe they just do not want to put forth the effort? Why bother!

Unfortunately I think it's because it's "cool" in today's society to not be able to spell or use punctuation...I'm guilty of the occasional typo but I never use abbreviations like 'u' and '2' - just can't do it! And if I go into a post where those are over the top I just don't bother replying...if you can't be bothered typing at least half your sentence properly then I can't be bothered typing ANYTHING in response.

I agree completely. Proper grammar - spelling, punctuation, etc, are HUGE pet peeves of mine. It drives me insane to try to read someone who says... wot av u dun 2day wowz das rly kewl i lyke u alt u shud com 2 my hos 2nite I mean, my Lord. Are we really that uneducated??

It annoys me as well because it shows a decline in English language and that people are not thinking about what they are writing. English is being taught in schools but, more and more people are being lazy and using slang instead of ordinary good English. I think the problem is people have become lazy and maybe they are being allowed to get away with it.

I know what you mean. Your post is a prime example of the next level of loss of proper grammar. You generally spell things correctly (although Grammer is a city in Indiana and grammar refers to the rules of language usage), but you use the word lately twice in the first sentence, including at the end of the sentence. To paraphrase your post using more proper grammar: Lately, I've noticed an increased lack of correct spelling, punctuation and tense in written communication. I understand it's often easier to use abbreviations in chats or text messages. However, when the person is from a country where English is the dominant language, why does this happen? I have seen examples of this trend in school work being turned in to teachers and inter-office memos. Is it so difficult to type out "was" instead of "wuz" or "you" instead of "u"? Is it so hard to use an "'" when using a contraction so that you type out "can't" instead of "cant"? There are other basics being ignored, such as adding periods, cmmas and other punctuation that make it easier for people to understand what is being said. The occasional misspelling or typo is forgivable; it is not what I am talking about. I am talking about the constant mishandling of words and sentences. Have you noticed this trend as well? Is there any chane of explaining why it continues? Can we fix it? I'm sure that I broke some of the rules of grammar even in my paraphrasing - can anyone improve on my paragraph? I think that the root of the problem is partially the predominance of less formal written communication, and partially a general disinterest in both teaching and learning proper grammar. As the dialectic of the average American has developed over the years, the idiom of the masses has become a common denominator, and developed into the standard that is taught rather than a starting point in teaching the proper way to speak and write. Surely you concur.

we cannot help it and stop it from happening.. everyday people make new words and some words even vanish because most people stop using it. and now with our technology being part of our daily lives, we can't stop people if they ignore everything from grammar, to spelling, punctuations and more. we wanna make our lives easier as much as possible. if we make everything perfect, where is the fun in that?

hey yes we do use shot forms during chats ....but this does not mean that we r losing our grammar....i mean its really boring n difficult to type each n everything.....so better use short forms dat can be easily understood...but yes do remember correct forms also..lolz

Dear friend, i think in times of communication its very much okay. Look in ancient periods humans invented the language to communicate. That language budded and flowered as today's language. So language is used by human for them. So if human needs faster communication with short expressions I think we must not have any problems. But certainly it is not expected that poet/authors start writing with that type of code language. their books are the place for proper spelling and grammer of language .... "To be or not to be" not "2 b or nt 2 b" :)

I have commented on this practice in chat before, and people got in an uproar :-) Personally, I see it as laziness. I don't mind laziness; we all feel lazy at times, but it does make it difficult to follow a discussion that is filled with "u" "ur" and "ne1." Maybe it's just me, but I think it takes longer to decipher the meaning in sentences that contain these abbreviations. I think it's meant to be some sort of "cool" "hip" shorthand. So, maybe it's my age that is the problem.

yes.. the same thing happened to me today when I was workin on a medical project ... I came across some simple words but was finding difficult to pronunce it and spell it... even my grammar has been worsened and just cant understand what's happening with me and my english ... well I guess I will require a brain wash once again :)

Talking about proper grammar, you spelled grammar incorrectly

I understand what you mean. I too feel sad that such a beautiful language is being actually molested this way. And the worst is that I too sometime resort to it. I guess people use such twisted spellings just for the heck of it. There is no reasoning behind it and i can see that it is a dangerous trend.

yeah i observe that too. but i think id depends if its really formal or just a chat. we cant blame anyone i guess cause its been a trend. and as long as the audience understood it i thinkg its ok like in your title discussion, i think you misspell the "langauge" instead of lanaguage...but i know we people doesn't forget the true meaning of language.

its really obvious that what we people are doing....its ok when we are in hurry but it is not when we are writing a letter or type some important...we should be use to write correct spelling and pronunciation and makes our youngers to do the same practice.

When I see what's being written on the internet, it blows me away. I too have problems with internet shorthand and if I see a post that is incomprehensible, I just move on. I just don't see the point of responding.