Some people think that increasing communication usage of computers and mobile phones by young people has had a negative effect on their reading and writing skills. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
I agree with the given statement, which says that modern communication technology is leading to I agree with the given statement, which says that modern communication technology is leading to the deterioration of reading and writing skills. I believe that both writing and reading skills have suffered a setback, due to computers and smartphones powered by the internet.
To begin with, modern-day technology has an overall negative effect on students’ writing skills because it encourages cyber slang. Cyber slang is a term used to describe shortcuts, alternative words, or even symbols used to convey thoughts in an electronic document. This is because most digital media limit the number of characters a person can use at a time, and students devise ways to get the most out of their limited space. However, the problem arises when this slang finds its way into formal writing. For example, abbreviations, such as ‘lol’, ‘C U L8R’ and ‘bcoz’ seem OK when used on Facebook and WhatsApp, but are grossly wrong when used in school essays. Moreover, the autocorrect feature fixes their mistakes, so they don’t even realize that they wrote something wrong. In future, this generation will need good, solid reading and writing skills in their jobs and professional lives, but they will find it difficult to get rid of these habits.
Secondly, due to technological development, reading habits are quickly vanishing into thin air. Students now spend more hours browsing the net, playing games on their handsets and writing non-stop SMSs to their contacts. Reading a book or any other piece of written material has become an archaic idea for most schoolchildren and adults. Students are rarely interested in reading for pleasure and enjoyment instead they read only to pass examinations. The declining interest in reading culture among our children, especially those in primary and secondary schools, is a cause for alarm. Unfortunately, reading is not a subject and is just regarded as a tool facilitating many other types of learning. Therefore, the lack of reading culture among our youth nowadays has greatly affected the quality of graduates being produced. Consequently, the influence of electronic media on the reading habits of pupils has become an issue of concern.
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To sum up, it can be reiterated that the communication technology of today is definitely hampering reading and writing skills. The onus is on the parents and teachers to teach children to teach children of today, the right ways to use this technology so that its negative effects are minimized.