1

Aklan Catholic College

Archb. Gabriel M. Reyes St.,
Kalibo, Aklan, 5600 Philippines
Tel. No.: (036) 268-4152
Fax No. (036) 268-4010
Email: info@acc.edu.ph

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Text messaging is perhaps one of the things that people do most daily. Look around on any

public vehicles, in restaurants, or even just in the streets you can notice that most people are holding

their phones and text messaging.

These days, most teenagers in our country are nearly inseparable from cell phones, not because

they are constantly talking, but because they are connecting with their friends through text messaging.

Although cell phones are banned in most schools here, most of the students still bring their cellular

phones with them. Few adults, including teachers and administrators, understand why adolescents are

text messaging and how they harness text messaging capabilities in the classrooms. Recent research

does not appear to impact negatively on children and young peoples literacy and may even benefit

childrens spelling attainment. However less attention has been paid to the impact of text messaging on

childrens and young peoples understanding of grammatical forms. This examines the limited amount

of research on the practice of text messaging for adolescents and young adults, focusing on the

motivation, means, and methods of text messaging.

The rapidly growing rate of phone technology at this modernized generation is kind of

disturbing. It seems that anywhere you can see people glued to their phone screens, fingers typing away.

On sidewalks, school premises, even at the crowded places. Majority of these people are teenagers.
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Aklan Catholic College
Archb. Gabriel M. Reyes St.,
Kalibo, Aklan, 5600 Philippines
Tel. No.: (036) 268-4152
Fax No. (036) 268-4010
Email: info@acc.edu.ph

What are some of the effects that texting is having on the teen literacy? That is the question that

the researcher explores in this paper. The researcher tackles about the impact it is making on texting

language and writing skills nowadays. Text messaging is the act of typing and sending a brief, electronic

message between two or more mobile phones or fixed or portable devices over a phone network

according to the term originally referred to messaging sent using the Short Message Service or SMS; it

has grown to include messages containing image, video and sound content, known as MMS messages.

The sender of a text message is known as a texter, while the service itself has different colloquialisms

depending on the region. It is simply referred to as a text here in Philippines.

With the revolutionary new form of communication that technology has introduced comes a

debate on what effects these new digital mediums have on literacy. In the age of text messaging, where

words are reduced to nonstandard abbreviations and symbols, many people question the future of

literacy especially to teenagers. There is no arguing that teenagers nowadays text more than ever. The

majority of population claims that the shortened and abbreviated characteristics of text messaging are

making teenagers lazy, not forcing them to use the proper grammar and spelling that teenagers learn in

school. Considering the popularity if text messaging to teenagers, it is believed that this type of

communication is destroying the way people read, think and write. Text messaging was even preferred

by someone as The Dumbest Generation.

One study states that cell phones are becoming a necessity this modern day, to the point where

every teenager and adult must have at least one. Individuals are rapidly depending to these devices for

communication purposes.
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Aklan Catholic College
Archb. Gabriel M. Reyes St.,
Kalibo, Aklan, 5600 Philippines
Tel. No.: (036) 268-4152
Fax No. (036) 268-4010
Email: info@acc.edu.ph

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

This study aims to identify the effects of frequent usage of improper text messaging in English

grammar among fourth year Bachelor of Science in information technology students in Aklan Catholic

College, the study seeks to find answers to the following questions:

1. What are the effects of frequent usage of improper text messaging in English grammar among fourth

year Bachelor of Science in information technology students in Aklan Catholic College?

2. What are the effects of frequent utilization of improper text messaging in terms of:

2.1 Lexical Resource (Vocabulary)

2.2 Grammatical Range

2.3 Accuracy in writing

3. Is there a significant relationship between frequent text messaging and the effects of frequent

utilization of improper text messaging of the respondents?

HYPOTHESIS

. There is no significant relationship between frequent text messaging and the effects of frequent

utilization of improper text messaging of the Fourth Year Bachelor of Science in Information

Technology students in Aklan Catholic College.

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Aklan Catholic College
Archb. Gabriel M. Reyes St.,
Kalibo, Aklan, 5600 Philippines
Tel. No.: (036) 268-4152
Fax No. (036) 268-4010
Email: info@acc.edu.ph

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

DEPENDENT VARIABLE INDEPENDENT VARIABLE

Competency in English Frequent utilization of

grammar specifically in writing improper text messaging in
as described by its: mobile such as, shortcutting
1. Cohesion & Coherence of words and neologisms
2. Lexical Resource
3. Grammatical Range and
Accuracy

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

Most people have probably texted on their phones at least once. The Centre of Science Education

at Sheffield University found that about ninety percent of the youth have cell phones, and that ninety-

six percent of this group uses them to text (Plester Bell ). Americans tend to use their mobile devices to

text more than to make calls (Cingel Sundar ). Texting is reported as the most preferred communication

style (Cingel Sundar ). The introduction of mobile phones and texting has greatly impacted the way in

which people communicate (Kemp Bushnell). People no longer have to make phone calls to keep in

touch with friends and family, they can now type a short message stating whatever they need to say.

Text messaging has grown in popularity ever since the very first text was sent in the year 1993

by a student who was working for the Nokia Corporation (Drouin Davis ). Teenagers have reported an

average of receiving 46.03 and sending 45.11 messages in a day (Cingel Sundar ). In another study,

ninety percent of students in seventh to twelfth grade reported sending eleven texts per week (Kemp

Bushnell). Texting is thought to have possibly negative and positive effects on students literacy. When
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Aklan Catholic College
Archb. Gabriel M. Reyes St.,
Kalibo, Aklan, 5600 Philippines
Tel. No.: (036) 268-4152
Fax No. (036) 268-4010
Email: info@acc.edu.ph

asked their opinion, educators said that they believe that texting has a negative effect on students

writing skills (Verheijen). This belief may be a result of teachers having mentioned receiving work that

contained textisms (Powell Dixon). The issue of texting having effects on literacy has received media

attention over the years. While it is commonly assumed that textisms have negative effects on student

literacy, some studies suggest that they may also have positive effects depending on the situation in

which they are used.

Although much of the media attention that has been directed at the effects of texting has been

negative, some studies argue that texting may actually have a positive effect on the literacy skills of

students. In one study, results showed that the more abbreviated words that were used, the higher verbal

reasoning scores tended to be, which points to a clear positive correlation between textism use and

verbal reasoning (Plester Wood). Another study that was conducted using British children suggests that

more proficient literacy skills was associated to deciphering textisms, which supports the idea that using

textisms are driving development of literacy skills (Kemp Bushnell ). A textism is a largely sound-

based or phonological, form of spelling that can reduce the time and cost of texting (Kemp Bushnell).

Textisms are often associated with acronyms, emoticons, and the removal of excess parts of spelling and

grammar (Drouin Davis).

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Aklan Catholic College
Archb. Gabriel M. Reyes St.,
Kalibo, Aklan, 5600 Philippines
Tel. No.: (036) 268-4152
Fax No. (036) 268-4010
Email: info@acc.edu.ph

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The Students: The fourth year Information Technology students, must to know how important to study

about English grammar specifically in writing and to identify its difficulties.

The Researcher: Being the researcher is a responsibility to scrutinize your own research and also a

responsibility to choose the right topic to take up with the students and also to give them ideas of the

effects of the study.

The Future Researcher: To give ideas on what topic will they choose and the procedures that they will

use.

DEFINITION OF TERMS

The following terms are defined operationally for better understanding of the study and clarify

any questions that readers may have.

English grammar - the way the English words are put together in order to make a sentence.

In this study, it will focus on writing that will measure their English Proficiency.

Cellular phone: a telephone with access to a cellular radio system so it can be used over a wide area,

without a physical connection to a network.

In this study, Cellular phone refers to the gadgets that they use to send text messages.
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Aklan Catholic College
Archb. Gabriel M. Reyes St.,
Kalibo, Aklan, 5600 Philippines
Tel. No.: (036) 268-4152
Fax No. (036) 268-4010
Email: info@acc.edu.ph

Neologism: a newly coined word or expression.

In this study, Neologism refers to the words and expressions that the respondents use when text

messaging.

Effects: the change that is the result or consequence of an action or other cause.

In this study, effects refer to the results of frequent utilization of improper text messaging.

Frequent Utilization: Using something very often or in many cases.

In this study, frequent utilization refers on how often the respondents use improper text

messaging.

SCOPE AND LIMITATION

This study aims to determine the effects of frequent improper text messaging in English grammar among

students. It is delimited to Fourth Year Bachelor of Science in Information Technology students of

Aklan Catholic College believing that frequent utilization of improper text messaging may have effects

on their English Proficiency and to lengthen their knowledge and improve for their better understanding.
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Aklan Catholic College
Archb. Gabriel M. Reyes St.,
Kalibo, Aklan, 5600 Philippines
Tel. No.: (036) 268-4152
Fax No. (036) 268-4010
Email: info@acc.edu.ph

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Texting feature in mobile phones has become a Gods gift for most of the people. This feature

made this communication very convenient to everyone. It has become an important part of the daily

lives of people, especially to the Filipinos. According to AHN Media Corp (2010), the Philippines have

been tagged as the texting capital of the world. Many Filipinos exchange text messages with the use of

their mobile phones. People have become frequent texters, and they have started sending messages in

shortened ways. This problem cropped up with the innovation of this new technology, and its possible

effects on the students language proficiency.

The language proficiency of the students are important for effective communication. Language,

according to McKee (1939), will successfully help people in different activities, which involve

communication, various types of interaction, or even writing. Whether we are students or not, there is a

need to use language appropriately. McKee goes on to say that the ability to write effectively is still

important regardless of the influential and incredible effects of technology on mans activities.

One of the most common issues of text messaging is its effects on education. Some educators say

it is negatively affecting the spelling proficiency of the students. According to Dolch (1942), Children

must spell if they are to write. When we write, we are really writing down our thoughts. These thoughts

are expressed using words, and these words need to be spelled correctly. Therefore, writing would

require appropriate spelling (p. 1).

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Aklan Catholic College
Archb. Gabriel M. Reyes St.,
Kalibo, Aklan, 5600 Philippines
Tel. No.: (036) 268-4152
Fax No. (036) 268-4010
Email: info@acc.edu.ph

Writing, in addition, is very important, because it is one form of communication. According to

Shidle (1965), writing skills are needed everywhere. In his book The Art of Successful

Communication, he states that it is hard to find works which no longer needs communicating skills.

Anywhere, man can connect ideas through written communication, which exists in any level. Every

person has the need to communicate effectively, and writing them down is one of the most efficient way

(p. 11). Also, according to Quattrini (1985), the best way to show these ideas is through writing because

it is like shaping what you are thinking. This shaping also includes choosing the right words for

your thought (p. 2-3). These words would bring the message of your thoughts (Cruse, 2000).

Choosing the right words requires wide vocabulary. At the present, we are using English as our

medium of communication; therefore, there is a need for us to be familiar with the English vocabulary.

According to Gabianas research (as cited in Saga-Olis, 1998), students were very positive toward the

English language as part of their system of education. This attitude of the respondents led to the

conclusion that the students felt that language play an important role on their success in the future. The

achievement of many professionals also lies on their ability to use the language appropriately.

According to Mackay (as cited in Saga-Olis, 1998), professionals who master the English language tend

to be successful and globally competitive (p. 42). This goes to show the importance of English as a

medium of communicating internationally. The study of Enriquez and Nolasco (2007) also showed that

a person who has a wide range of vocabulary might not have difficulties in thinking and communication.

The two also added that vocabulary, spelling and grammar skills are the basic components of language

which are very useful to a mans life.

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Aklan Catholic College
Archb. Gabriel M. Reyes St.,
Kalibo, Aklan, 5600 Philippines
Tel. No.: (036) 268-4152
Fax No. (036) 268-4010
Email: info@acc.edu.ph

However, nowadays, there are educators who have been complaining on papers handed by their

students. One of these educators is Kate Ross (2010), who stated that the use of cellular phones are

affecting students spelling and grammar proficiency negatively, as evidenced from their use of

abbreviated words. This resulted in extensive use of electronic chatting. The students are producing

worse assignments, creating incorrect subject-verb agreements, and misspelling. Ross is an instructional

coach for language arts teachers in her own district, and she often see shortened words or sentences in

text messaging dialogues on students compositions. She said that this might have changed the attitude

of the students towards writing, and it seemed that they want everything done as fast as possible. But

before mobile phones became a problem to some, it used to be a connector between people.

Montiel and Estuar (2006) made a study about the usage of mobile phone nowadays. And they

concluded that text messaging is the most effective way of communicating with other people. Aside

from that, it is the fastest and the cheapest among the communication technologies of the new generation

because of its sending shortened messages (SMS) or texting feature. This feature, allows people to

communicate with each other regardless of how far they are from each other. Thus, this texting feature

made mobile phones or cellular phones very popular in our country, that even the youth are getting

hooked up to this new form of technology.

Estuars research (2003) showed that there is a high rate of ownership and high rate of usage of

cellular phones regardless of what school or gender the students belong. Private school students were

more frequent users of cost-incurring features, whereas public school students were more frequent users

of no-cost features of mobile phones. The former also have a higher rate of texting compared to their

public school counter parts. In addition, the number of days one can survive without a cellular phone or
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Aklan Catholic College
Archb. Gabriel M. Reyes St.,
Kalibo, Aklan, 5600 Philippines
Tel. No.: (036) 268-4152
Fax No. (036) 268-4010
Email: info@acc.edu.ph

without having to exchange messages is higher among males and public school students. This goes to

show that cellular phones are very popular, regardless of the age.

An example that would show the rapidly growing popularity of cellular phones is the report

from Sify News (as cited in Proysen, 2009) about a 13-year old girl from California who had sent 14,

528 messages in a month (13, January 2009).

These communication gadgets are used by adolescents not only for communication purposes but

also for maintaining their relationships with other people. Cell phones provide them the ability to show

who they are and to express what they feel through texting feature. According to Pertierra et al. (as cited

in Estuar, 2003), the cellular phone is like an extension or an expression of ones self. Compared to

other forms of communication that the new world offers like the telephones and electronic mail, mobile

phone technology greatly augments the non-confrontational nature of Filipinos. As what is said earlier,

in texting, people can send messages to a person even without knowing where the person is, what the

person is doing, and who the person is with. The mobile phones predecessor regular telephones require

a fixed location for their use. But with the cellular phone, being primarily mobile, people can now

establish contact with another person, regardless of where the caller and the called are.

Russell (2010) stated that there are different effects of frequent text messaging. He cited an

educator in Edutopia.org saying that I teach 9th and 11th English, and regardless of the age, my

students spelling is atrocious. Texting does not and has not helped. Some teachers believed that

shorthand texting is killing the English language because students have been writing compositions in

bad spelling and grammar.

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Aklan Catholic College
Archb. Gabriel M. Reyes St.,
Kalibo, Aklan, 5600 Philippines
Tel. No.: (036) 268-4152
Fax No. (036) 268-4010
Email: info@acc.edu.ph

CHAPTER III

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY

This chapter presents the research design, place, the respondents, the research instruments, data

gathering techniques and statistical treatment data.

Research Design

This study is descriptive co relational in nature and will employ an evaluative questionnaire. This

particular method will be used because it enables to explore and explain the effect of the given

phenomenon. This method involves range from the quantitative survey which describes and status quo,

the correlation study which investigates the relationship between variables. It will describe the

demographical characteristics of the students. Furthermore, it will also examine the relationship between

the frequencies of using improper text messaging with short cutting and neologisms and its effect to the

proficiency in English grammar.

Respondents of the Study

The target population of this study will be the bona fide Fourth Year Bachelor of Science in

Information Technology students of Aklan Catholic College this will include both male and female

students. Non-Random Purposive Sampling will be used to determine the sample population for the

audit. However, in consideration to the 99% Confidence level and 5.0% Margin of error of this audit, all
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Aklan Catholic College
Archb. Gabriel M. Reyes St.,
Kalibo, Aklan, 5600 Philippines
Tel. No.: (036) 268-4152
Fax No. (036) 268-4010
Email: info@acc.edu.ph

of the 27 Fourth Year Bachelor of Science in Information Technology students will be the subject of this

research.

Data Gathering and Procedure

The data will be collected through a survey and evaluative questionnaire. English grammar proficiency

will be assessed by an on the spot composition of the short essays or description of a trend table. This is

done by writing. The following criteria will be utilized in measuring the English Proficiency. Task

Response Coherence and Cohesion, Lexical Resource (Vocabulary) and Grammatical Range and

Accuracy.

The English Proficiency will be calculated as a sum total of the four criteria. The determination

of English Proficiency is based upon an algorithm with the following logic:

Satisfactory Proficient. Exhibits the criteria described at all time at the highest acceptable level. Use

different grammar tenses and pay attention to word order in the sentence. Uses range of sentence

structure and uses correct punctuations. English is highly proficient.

Partial Proficent. Exhibits the criteria described sometimes and needs further correction in composing

essays. English Proficiency needs to reinforce and trained.

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Aklan Catholic College
Archb. Gabriel M. Reyes St.,
Kalibo, Aklan, 5600 Philippines
Tel. No.: (036) 268-4152
Fax No. (036) 268-4010
Email: info@acc.edu.ph

Insufficient English Proficiency. The criteria described were inconsistent or not exhibited at all times.

English grammar and vocabulary is limited., inflexible and inconsistent.

Ethical Considerations

The moral rights and privileges of the respondents will not be neglected; proper courtesy will be

observed to the Dean of the Information Technology before and during the review of the students

biographical data and distribution of questionnaire. Rapport will be highly considered. Informed consent

will be obtained from the students, considering their volition, understanding and voluntary submission.

The respondents will not be forced to participate in the study and have the rights as well to withdraw his

participation from the study.

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Aklan Catholic College
Archb. Gabriel M. Reyes St.,
Kalibo, Aklan, 5600 Philippines
Tel. No.: (036) 268-4152
Fax No. (036) 268-4010
Email: info@acc.edu.ph

REFFERENCE

BOOK

The Centre of Science Education at Sheffield University found that about ninety percent of

the youth have cell phones, and that ninety- six percent of this group uses them to text

(Plester Wood 2000)

The introduction of mobile phones and texting has greatly impacted the way in which

people communicate (Kemp 1998)

Writing about the possible benefits of student texting (Lee OConner 2001)

Syntax and Morphology are considered as two fundamental ingredients of Grammar

(Batstone 1999)

This belief may be a result of teachers having mentioned receiving work that contained

textisms (Powell Dixon 2003)