Yes I agree with the author. When my daughter was in 2nd or 3rd grade (don’t remember which) I asked her teachers about correcting the kids to make them spell words properly. They were more interested in teaching them how to sound it out. Anyway I made sure I always corrected her or encouraged her to ask how to spell it. Today she (19) is a good at spelling words. IMO this mumbo jumbo language they use for texting is just plain stupid!

I totally agree. It’s a tragedy that more and more teens prefer video games and television than reading or actually playing outside. Plus, art and music school programs constantly get cut back more and more! I don’t shelter my kids from t.v., BUT I do limit the amount of t.v. they watch and definitely push reading—which increases your vocab. and makes you an excellent speller—and encourages using their creative imagination as much as possible.

From a teenagers perspective, I do agree to some extent with the author.

With texing and IMing, spelling is constantly put on the back burner, as well as grammer. I personally have a pet peeve of incorrect grammer or incorrect spelling, but many teens dont care.

Being part of the group the author is talking about I agree to some things that they have said. Many kids in my year 10 classes will write essays in IM instead of using proper spelling and grammar. It annoys me when they do this. Although I do live on the computer I prefer to read over sitting there doing nothing between my chats. I get annoyed when my friends use stupid shortcuts that don’t make sense. My brothers are only 2 years younger then me they are a lot worse off spending most of their time on the computer on the online games. I find they can’t spell basic words and their vocabulary isn’t as great as mine was at their age. I’ve also found that their teachers aren’t doing anything to help them with this or comprehension which most their class struggles with.

while this is sadly true, people must remember it is not true for ALL teens. most of my friends are actually some of the most studious people i have ever met. while we text and chat on IM, we still make time to read and take AP and Honors classes and study. i think this is becoming a stereotype for teenagers- that they do not like to read and care more about Facebook and parties rather than studying. however, this is not totally true and my friends and i do not deserve to be called “the dumbest generation.”