Does Texting Affect Writing? By Michaela Cullington

In her essay “Does Texting Affect Writing?” Michaela Cullington addresses the issue of text messaging possible causing poor communication skills and the use of textspeak, abbreviations used during text messaging such as “LOL” and “g2g,” in students’ formal writing. Cullington argues that text messaging does not have an effect on students’ formal writing. She addresses the opposition directly, even citing credible sources. However, she also cites credible sources with better information to support her point, and even conducts an experiment of her own. All of these factors combine and work well together to form a well-executed argument within Cullington’s essay. Cullington begins her essay by addressing her opposition. She cites studies done
She does not limit her sources in the experiment to a single group. Cullington even brings up the fact that she attempted as much diversity as possible in her focus groups. She uses a mixture of both students (who tend to agree with her views) and teachers (who tend to disagree with her views) in her survey. Cullington also takes actual formal writings by students into consideration rather than simply taking the students and teachers at their word for the quality of the writings. Cullington also makes sure to mention exactly what she uses to measure the quality of work. She uses correct grammar and use of or lack of textspeak in formal writing to avoid bias based on personal preference for content of the papers. Throughout her entire paper, Cullington makes sure that there is a reason for every piece of evidence that she uses, and she makes sure that all her evidence is well supported. Not one bit of information is wasted or added uselessly. The essay is well-organized, well-constructed, and well thought through. She uses valid sources for both the opposing view and her own view. With all of this, Cullington creates a well-organized essay that presents her argument very