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New Zealand To Allow 'Text-Speak' On Exams
ScentCone writes "New Zealand's Qualification Authority (which sets testing standards for the public schools) is confident that those grading papers will understand the meaning of students' responses, even if they use phone/IM-style text-speak. From the article: 'credit will be given if the answer "clearly shows the required understanding," even if it contains text-speak.' Many teachers are not amused, and critics say that the move will devalue NZ's equivalent of a high school diploma." Not to mention that graders will need to be restrained so they don't gouge their own eyes out. While in the medium of text messages, some shorthand might be in order, but I didn't realize that world paper, pencil, and ink shortages were so severe so that text-speak is necessary everywhere.
How are kids supposed to learn proper spelling & grammar?
Anyone remember "Ebonics"?
Willie...
what about l33t sp33k?
t3h kn33 b0n3 15 c0nn3ct3d t0 teh th1g|-| b0n3!
liqbase
I 4 1 wlcm our txtg ovrlrds ...and let the stupid texting jokes begin!
that frst pst is worth +5, insightful in New Zealand?
Religion is the opiate of the masses. The wealthy smoke the real stuff.
Sometimes "text-speak" (surprised it's not "txt-spk") appears in odd places. Like 90% of the offshore folks from India I've interacted with, even in e-mail that was otherwise very professional and well written. Now some of these guys were bozos, but even for the ones that I knew were solid, smart workers...I just couldn't be sure if they even knew that "you" is not spelled "u"
Is "The Artist Formerly Know As" popular over there? I blame him for all this in general.
SO YOU'RE GOING TO DIE: The Comic for Dealing with Death
One thing that would give me hope though is that textspeak is really only required right now because with so many modern phones, text input is still cumbersome, so it is a necessity. Seemingly when new technologies come into place which would make text entry more efficient (maybe better predictive text input, speech-to-text built into phones, etc.) textspeak won't even be needed.
At least that's what I hope for.
Bali Haque, deputy chief executive of the authority, said there had been no change to guidelines and there was no specific policy about text language. However, he warned: "If people are expecting they can come up with an exam script full of text and pass, then they're dreaming. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=1 &ObjectID=10410066
"...some sort of devolvation..."
...
No results found for devolation
It looks like it's already devolving now.
ORLY WTF?
An Indian-American Hindu committed to non-violent thought/speech/action alarmed by the global explosion of radical Islam
That could hide many things. After all, understanding the subject isn't the whole of the mark. Communicating it also carries a non-trivial mark.
If the examiner can't correctly work out what the writer is trying to say, then marks will be lost. Presentation also carries a portion of the mark in most subjects, and using txt spk will almost certainly lose that.
So, it's basically allowing people to use txt spk, and actually have a non-zero mark (credit given for the understanding of the subject where it's communicated successfully), but in all probability, they won't be garnering the kind of mark they would otherwise be achieving if they used correct English.
It's possibly the kind of discrepancy that would make the difference between a fail and an average pass mark (depending on how obfuscated the text was by using txt spk).
Text speak in an English exam of course should result in failing it. On the other hand, I think bad grammar and spelling should be ignored on a math or a chemistry exam, so long the answer is understandable.
You spelling and grammar knowlegde is perfectly fine, as far as I can tell (I'm a non english speaker though). On the other hand, you have serious problems with comprehension.
Ahhh...the great dumpster continuum. Many a free computer will be found there. -- sowth (748135)
That's simply because "devolvation" is not dictionarified yet. But you comprehense it anyway.
Doubleplusgood..
J00 h4V3 4 Pr0bl3m W17 l337? my h19h 5cH00L 1n5717u73d l337 7w0 y34rZ B3f0r3 3V3Ry0N3 3lZ3, 4nd 17 h45N'7 h4Mp3r3D MY 4B1L17Y 70 C0MMUn1C473 1n 4ny W4Y. 5Ur3, 17 w4Z d3B473d 0N 73h L0c4l n3WZ, 4nD 73H d3p4R7M3n7 0F 3DuC4710n H3Ld 155U3 W17 17, bU7 1 7ruly B3l13v3 7h47 4lL W3 l3375P33K3Rz r M0r3 5U173D pH0R 73H j0b M4Rk37 4Z 4 R35Ul7.
There's nothing wrong with it. That's the point. It's an eloquently constructed commentary debunking proper writing. It ought to be modded funny.
Fry: I tell you, bein' here really brings me back to my college days. (Flashback to Coney Island Community College.) Good old Coney Island College. Go Whitefish!
Leela: Don't take this the wrong way, Fry, but you don't seem like the educated type.
Fry: Oh yeah? (Produces Notice of Failure to Graduated from CICC.) Read it and weep. I'm a certified college drop-out.
Leela: Please. Everyone knows twentieth century colleges were basically expensive day care centers.
Professor: That's true. By current academic standards, you're merely a high school dropout.
Fry: What? That's not fair. I deserve the same respect any other college dropout gets. By God, I'm going to enroll here at Mars University and drop out all over again!
I'm mainly just thinking that it would be kind of a shame if the language (at least the spelling, and some of the grammar), does turn into textspeak as a standard characteristic of the language.
Then again, who knows, maybe it is more efficient?
text speak? Such as "u r an 1d10t" or "u fail it"
Monstar L
u fl dk
g, su me
i dr
I am an english major.
In some poor parts of the world an English degree means studying how to spell and speak properly.
This is exceedingly unfortunate because the true value of an appreciation of English comes from the ability to understand the nuances of a persons expressions, and in turn to control ones own nuances.
As a Comp Sci major I think the best way to explain this would be to say that it adds bandwidth to people's ability to communicate, before I became an English major I thought it would add bandwidth in the way facial expressions do. Now I understand that a true understanding of English adds more bandwidth than anything short of the original use of language.
This is difficult to explain to people who are so used to people using casual expressions and syntax and choosing topics without enough thought.
When an author puts a word on a page that is the word he has chosen and he has chosen it for a reason, he chose it instead of every other word there is.
Anyway, I'm disgusted with New Zealanders, fortunately in my country approx 50-60% of people end up going to university, and they call it university because your forced to take English.
Cheers!
On the other hand, you have serious problems with comprehension.
What?
That, I think, is the key thing: we're talking about communication here. Abbreviations that require the reader to think twice about the meaning of the writing are an impairment to efficient communication. Depending on the context, they may also be an indication that you consider your time spent writing to be more valuable than the reader's time, which tells the reader how little you value their consideration.
Certainly on on-line forums for students where I've helped out in the past, contributors would be far more willing to reply to a question that was carefully written to explain the problem clearly and concisely than to try to interpret vague L337sp33k or txt tlk because someone couldn't be bothered to write in proper English.
In other words, conventional shorthands are fine if they're used in an appropriate context. IMHO, few people reading this on Slashdot won't immediately understand this sentence. However, those who write poorly out of laziness should not be surprised to find that they come across as such, and are treated accordingly by those whose opinions of them might matter. I wouldn't write "IMHO" in a business report for an audience who might not be familiar with the shorthand.
If you disagree, post your argument. (-1, Overrated) isn't your personal censorship tool for views you don't like.
Wrong ! it is B4 instead of B3f0r3.
The Emporor's new clothes: The king is dead - Long live the king ! leet sp33k will |-|4v3 gr4m4
I 4 1 wlcm our new overlords: The leet sp33k Grammar Nazis
I fixed it for you guys.
Dear Christ, I find myself greatly disturbed that I understood scrambled l337. I need to go outside more.
Note: I am an American high school student.
The poster knows what he's talking about, his people butchered the English language a long time ago.
Actually, it was correct as originally written. The fact that you can add words does not mean that you must.
Allow me to open up another can of worms by postulating that the problem with your filtered text is not its readability so much as the unlikelihood that today's youth would recognize the underlying translated document.
There are no karma whores, only moderation johns
If you're using Hungarian as an excuse, shouldn't that read:
advSorry prpFor prnMy nGrammar
You're special forces then? That's great! I just love your olympics!
Short Answer: Move along, nothing to see here, it's an unsubstantiated rumour.
Long Answer:
From a New Zealand Herald article, somewhat more authorative on what's going on in New Zealand than CNN.
Text language risky move in NCEA examinations
Friday November 10, 2006
By Claire Trevett
Students are being warned not to use cellphone texting abbreviations in NCEA exams after reports suggested the shorthand was to be allowed.
The New Zealand Qualifications Authority is dashing media reports that students could use text abbreviations in exams without penalty if their answers otherwise showed the required understanding.
...
Read the article for more. And get it while it's hot, as NZ Herald only allows access to non-subscribers for a week.
To quote a friend working in IT for St. John's College in New Zealand:
It is not true. There was an announcement here to all students and teachers
that the media has gotten this very wrong. As an English teacher said, "We
try to teach them good spelling and grammar, and then the media does this.
What is the point of teaching if kids would be allowed to do that?"
Blame seems to go to the Associated Press of America.