Why do teenagers on Yahoo Answers seem like they're illiterate?

Question

They write like they text and they look like idiots. It's not that I can't understand what they're saying, it's that what they're saying is retarded. Is it just a phase or are they going to grow up being stupid people, too? I'm sure all the answers will be mocking and lolz, etc., but trust me. If you can't write you are going to be serving people when you grow up.

Answer 1

They type like they are Iming. But u r very serious. ppl like u end up with great jobs......................but never get laid

Answer 2

I agree, although I am a teenager, I think that illiteracy is very bothersome and I hope it is just a phase for all. These teenagers are going to run corporations and nursing homes, so I think they need to start being literate NOW for practice, and to spare us all the annoyance. But those are the TEENAGERS. Many adults on here can be illiterate too, so I ask that you not put us all into one group. It's easy to call another generation illiterate, but blame your own too.

Answer 3

I am seventeen years old and an honours first-year at university. I never talk or write in "text," nor do I think I am some sort of anomaly. Maybe this is true in your experience, and I sympathise with you for having to deal with it. I do not however appreciate this faulty generalisation.

Answer 4

It's a phase...hopefully. I was a jerk too at that age but at least I always knew how to read write and spell.

Answer 5

It just that old people are mad that they are going to die soon

Answer 6

Maybe they don't know how to type fast... But in MY defense.. I'm 17 and I'm not illiterate by any means. Actually, I think I have better spelling and grammar than a lot of adults on here.

Answer 7

they are trying to write fast, so that their answer will appear high up on the list and get voted for or picked or whatever. by the way Idiot and retarded are really mean things to call people you don't know.  

Answer 8

I can only hope that it´s because they are so anxious to express themselves that they don´t think straight because if that´s the way that they are in school there is little hope for the future.

Answer 9

Most of us teens can write, its just that we choose to type like that. It is faster, and if we are rushing to answer, then we wil talk lik this. My mom even talks like this at her work. SHE IS 50!!! They "ping" eachother and they talk with the whole are=r and you=u thing. She is a respected buisness woman.

Answer 10

A good portion of adults type that way and a good portion of teenagers type properly; you just clump them into separate groups based upon the generalization that the younger generation is full of idiots and assume.

Answer 11

That is a good question, one that I honestly can't answer. I guess the main problem would be instant messaging program abbreviations and such not. If you think about it, most teens write like they type... just faster thankfully. It'd be easy to fix, start typing like a normal human being. Although... normal is now 'lika idit'. I've seen business proposal emails typed like that. No capitalization, improper spelling and punctuation. It's just awful!

Answer 12

That's just a complete generalisation to be honnest.

I am a teenager and so many people who I know do not type like that, including myself.

But I do understand where you're coming from and these teenagers talk/type like this because it's quicker and it's what most teenagers do.

But they might find the way that you type to be 'retarded' and really that's just a point of view.

Answer 13

Because they don't spend there life on yahoo answers all day

Answer 14

I agree with you totally and the scariest part is they are our future surgeons, judges and the administrators of government.

Answer 15

we wright like this because its faster and no we dont write like this on tests or on essays or when it matters (at least i dont) also i dont like "lolz" either its just stupid i just say "lol" and no i dont over use it and use it for something i said.

Answer 16

haha, I'm 13. I've been trying to be more literate but growing up with everyone being illiterate now(commercials especially phone ones, friends, adults trying to be 'cool') it can be hard. We aren't as lazy as some think, we've just grown up in a different culture, and we're different.  

Answer 17

They are victims of technology and will be unable to relate to anything other than a keypad on some handheld device their entire lives.  And yes, they are functionally illiterate.

Answer 18

Well Sloan, it's a quicker way to respond rather than typing it out all the way it should be, when it's just going to be sent in a second and be read once, then thrown out the cyber window forever. Also, just because we may type like "idiots" doesn't mean all teens do, and sometimes adults do.

So, being a teen whose wronly stereotyped, I personally think YOU look like the idiot for posting this question.

"Hope I helped, although I really don't care if I did"

:)

Answer 19

I'm fifteen, and I'm one of the LOSERS who writes out full sentences. For the most part, I'd say teens are educated when it comes to their mother tongue, but, they are too lazy, and don't want to seem nerdy by typing full sentences. But if you took the average teen, and gave him/her a literacy test, you'll find that they are of normal intelligence (hopefully) but in everyday life, unfortunately it doesn't matter as much as being understood. That's just a way of being efficient, especially if they're in a rush and want someone to read their message fast and understand it, even if someone else would say it looks stupid. And like others have said, it's not just teens, ADULTS can be illiterate too. Don't underestimate/generalize teens. We're as unique from each other as adults are.

Answer 20

I can only assume that they don't care to learn how to write correctly. That is a sad truth too because every decent job out there wants someone that can communicate effectively on paper.  

Answer 21

Easy - because they are.

Also, they are too young and inexperienced. They need more time,practice and education to learn the proper grammar, sentence structure and spelling techniques.  

Answer 22

It is the dumbing down of America, my friend. While it may be cute and popular, it will hurt people in the end. Try sending a text to your employer, talking slang in a job interview.  Forget cute; be smart.

Answer 23

Please don't put us all in one group. Many of us speak in proper sentences and give relevant input to the conversation.  

Answer 24

Please don't assume everyone is like that. A lot of people aren't and try hard not to be.  

Answer 25

by the way don't tell kids that.  i have better grammar than my mother happens to.  i can spell deoxyribonucleic acid.  i am not illiterate but i do text.  it just depends on how lazy that particular teenager is.  and sometimes how stupid, but not all the time.  sometimes they want to look cool.  

Answer 26

just cuz people type one way on the computer

dosent mean they write like that on paper

or even talk like that

Answer 27

i think there so used to it they completly dont realize there doing it and some people do it to make there text shorter.. and then people just do it to be cool

answer my question http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;...

Answer 28

they text to much and to lazy to write out the entire word

Answer 29

bc (thats because) we dont (thats don't without a ' ) like to write the entire word down... we txt (that is text in a shorter version) to much, its just natural now.

hope you understand now...

Answer 30

Well I'm a teenager and I write properly. But then I'm a weirdo with no friends so.  

Answer 31

Ayes whu ares yu kalling iliterite? We ar nut iliterite.