I believe that text speak developed initially as a way of minimising the cost of text messages (we had to get across what we wanted to say in a minimum of 160 characters, or pay lots more), and became more and more the “language of technology users”. And I must confess I believed that this language became more and more commonly used because speakers didn’t have to learn to use appropriate spelling and grammar.

But recent studies show that pupils using this text speak “requires an awareness of how sounds relate to written English” and demonstrates their greater spelling ability. So don’t be so hasty in stopping your children from using this language.