Kids are hammering away at their cell phones with their heads down, deep in conversation.
Well, pretty deep.
Okay, not very deep.
In fact, if you take a look at the text conversations kids are having, many of them look like this:
“hi” (hi)
“wu” (what’s up)
“nmjc” (not much, just chillin)
“ tt2t” (too tired to talk)
“me2” (me, too)
c u ltr (see you later)
lol (lots of love)
Controversial? Not really. Serious stuff? Not usually. The same stuff we used to say to each other for hours when we were teens hanging on the telephone and swatting away our parents with a promise to get off in just five more minutes?
Yep.
There’s been a lot of concern about kids and texting lately, and understandably so. Texting has become much more popular than a phone call - according to Nielsen the average teen texts 2,272 messages a month compared to just 203 calls.
And kids are using Net lingo abbreviations, often so coded it’s hard for a parent to make out exactly what’s being said. (Which is some cases is the point.)
The issue of “sexting” has also made headlines - kids sending photos of themselves nude or partially-nude to others. Or texting provocative messages to each other. While “sexting” isn’t limited to cell phones ( kids are doing it via e-mail and IM, too), this definitely has parents once again panicking about kids and technology.
While using technology obsessively or in a sexual way is concerning for parent, we all need to remember that this type of teen behavior isn’t new. Think back to party lines, three-way calling, heaving breathing pranks and the sexually oriented graffiti you may have experienced (or participated in?) as a teen. Remember writing notes in code, so your parents wouldn’t see them? Or even speaking in code on the phone just in case your parents were listening in on the other line?
Are there things parents need to be concerned with? Yes. But, while parents need to be aware of the associate pitfalls of kids texting on their cell phones, they also need to keep things in perspective. Like they have since the beginning of time, teens need supervision, guidance and lots and lots and lots of conversations.
Talking to kids about appropriate behavior, the impact of one bad decision, and the importance of modesty and privacy is important. These are almost the same conversations our own parents had with us. Or didn't. Or maybe should have.
Meanwhile, remember that most teen texting is of the benign, borderline-boring converational type.
“How are you?”
"Fine"
“What’s up?”
"Nothing."
“What are you doing?”
"Nothing."
“What is your brother doing?”
"Nothing."
“What are you doing this weekend?”
"Nothing."
Controversial? Not usually.
