Cell spell: txt now, read l8tr.

AuthorMangu-Ward, Katherine
PositionCitings - Cell phone texting and literacy - Brief article

CONTRARY TO worries that cell phone texting impairs literacy, kids who use text abbreviations on their phones--lol, l8tr, and the like--do better in reading and spelling in school, according to new study from Britain's Coventry University. In a small study of 63 children between the ages of 8 and 12, psychologist Clare Wood found that levels of text speak ("textism") were good predictors of reading ability.

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Wood theorizes that texting is related to "phonological awareness": the ability to sense and manipulate rhyme and other sound patterns in speech. This facility is tied to the development of reading and spelling skills.

"We were surprised to learn...

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