With the rapid development of the internet, fast-changing internet slang, especially "internet memes," not only floods cyberspace but has also infiltrated the youth population, raising concerns about their language habits and thinking development. Recently, a Chinese language teacher in Jiujiang, Jiangxi Province, patiently guided students to think deeply about the beauty of the Chinese language in response to their frequent use of "internet memes" in class, which has garnered widespread attention.
Students in Jiangxi frequently use internet slang and memes.
The teacher's clever trick resonated with the audience.
Liu Xiaojuan, a teacher at Jiujiang Bilingual Experimental School: When all you can think about is "package," all the other beautiful and good language in your mind is overwhelmed.
Liu Xiaojuan is a Chinese language teacher at Jiujiang Bilingual Experimental School in Jiangxi Province. The video that went viral online was recorded during the school's sports meet when she was assigning homework to her students, trying to persuade them to use fewer internet slang terms.
Liu Xiaojuan has been working in education for nine years. She has observed a significant increase in the proportion of students using internet slang in recent years, which has prompted her to pay attention to the language expression ability of teenagers.
Liu Xiaojuan, a teacher at Jiujiang Bilingual Experimental School: The boundaries of language are the boundaries of thought. When a child's language boundaries are particularly narrow, it will also affect the boundaries of their thinking. A large part of internet slang actually expresses an emotion. Children have a strong ability to recognize emotions, so they can quickly learn internet slang. We can actually use many words to express subtle feelings, but when a child's recognition ability and input are insufficient, all their words are reduced to a single "666".
In Liu Xiaojuan's view, teenagers are in a critical period of language development, and homogenized and simplistic internet memes may cause them to fall into "mental inertia" and easily lose their ability to perceive and appreciate classic texts. Therefore, she began to guide her students, which has also attracted the attention of many parents.
Student's parent Zhang Jinjin: Actually, I probably didn't realize this problem so deeply before, and it has also awakened me.
Internet access is becoming increasingly younger
Internet slang has become a social code for teenagers.
Children today are accessing the internet at increasingly younger ages, and a wide variety of internet slang has already infiltrated their daily conversations. Even some vulgar and tired internet memes are quietly stealing their attention. Why are internet memes so popular among teenagers? What impact do they have on children's language and thinking?
Experts analyze that the main reason why teenagers favor internet memes lies in their fun and social attributes. Through this shared language, they can quickly integrate into their peer groups and narrow the psychological distance. At the same time, the concise and concrete characteristics of internet memes also match the expression and communication habits of teenagers, enabling them to convey emotions more directly and establish identity.
A 2025 survey conducted by the China Youth and Children Research Center on 8,563 minors in seven provinces and cities showed that the top three channels for minors to learn about current events were short videos (77.2%), television (49.4%), and classroom teaching or school activities (41.7%).
Experts point out that internet memes often originate from funny clips or lines on online platforms that capture a certain emotion, and then spread widely after being imitated and adapted. Platform algorithms accurately capture the interests and preferences of teenagers, constantly pushing related videos, forming a closed loop of "the more they watch, the more they are pushed; the more they are pushed, the more they are used," allowing trending memes to amplify continuously within the "information cocoon."
Experts point out that, on the one hand, the lighthearted expression of internet memes can help teenagers release their emotions and integrate into social groups; on the other hand, it is necessary to be wary of the side effects of some bad internet memes and non-standard language on the development of teenagers' language and thinking abilities.
Sun Hongyan, a researcher at the China Youth and Children Research Center, stated: "Firstly, there's the issue of non-standard language. For example, those jokes often use homophones and misspellings, leading to grammatical confusion among teenagers. Over time, some children even confuse these non-standard expressions with formal written language. Secondly, teenagers develop a laziness in expressing themselves, gradually leading to language dulling. Also, some jokes, such as vulgar ones, not only affect the standardization of language when teenagers, especially minors, are exposed to them, but also have an impact on their moral character and values."
Distinguish between good and bad
Guiding teenagers to use internet slang appropriately
Internet memes come in all shapes and sizes, some good and some bad. Faced with the "meme culture" that teenagers use so readily, how should we guide children to distinguish between good and bad and use them appropriately?
Sun Hongyan, a researcher at the China Youth and Children Research Center, said: "We cannot 'condemn everything'. First, we need to understand what teenagers mean by using these memes. We need to distinguish which expressions are good and which are bad. We cannot deny the expressive needs of teenagers in the digital age with a one-size-fits-all approach."
Qi Xuejing, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of the School of Journalism and Communication at Beijing Normal University and Deputy Director of the Research Center for Minors' Online Literacy: Popular internet slang and internet memes represent two different directions. For example, the word "geili" (awesome/powerful) originated in the online context, but it has now been included in the general language dictionary. Another example is the recently popular "laoji" (old self), which has derived positive, encouraging meanings. Even when teenagers encounter and use it, schools and parents don't necessarily restrict or control it. However, some other words, in their usage, are actually negative, carrying ironic connotations and containing inappropriate content, which can have a negative impact on teenagers. When schools and parents realize this, they need to intervene effectively and guide them, explaining the negative connotations derived from or hidden behind these words.
Multiple parties working together
Creating a healthy online language environment
The newly revised Law on the Standard Spoken and Written Chinese Language has been implemented. How can families, schools, society, and platforms work together to create a standardized and healthy online language environment for teenagers?
Parents should view their children's use of internet slang rationally and guide them to use it appropriately. Through parent-child reading and other methods, parents can help their children appreciate the beauty of language. Schools can leverage information technology courses to conduct internet literacy education and enhance students' language appreciation skills through themed activities. Simultaneously, strengthening collaboration among families, schools, and communities is crucial to creating a unified effort.
Qi Xuejing, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of the School of Journalism and Communication at Beijing Normal University and Deputy Director of the Research Center for Internet Literacy of Minors: We need to strengthen the collaboration between families, schools, and communities. The whole society also has a responsibility to cooperate. For example, internet platforms should increase their investment in positive content for teenagers in terms of content and recommendation mechanisms. They should also strengthen the governance of the online ecosystem, purify the cyberspace, ensure that high-quality content is available to teenagers, and at the same time prevent teenagers from being eroded by risky online content.
Starting January 1st of this year, the newly revised Law on the Standard Spoken and Written Chinese Language officially came into effect, adding standardized requirements for the use of language in cyberspace. It clarifies that online audiovisual programs such as online literature and art programs, online dramas, and online movies, as well as online publications such as online games, should use the standard spoken and written Chinese language as the basic language and script. It also clarifies that the standard spoken and written Chinese language used on internet information platforms such as government-sponsored portals and mobile applications that provide public services should conform to national norms and standards, thus "clarifying requirements" and "establishing rules" for the use of language in cyberspace.
Yang Hong, Director of the Department of Language Application and Management of the Ministry of Education: We will implement the newly revised Law on the Standard Spoken and Written Chinese Language, adopt comprehensive measures, and guide young people to use online language reasonably. We will strengthen the joint efforts of families, schools, and society in educating young people, pay close attention to the online language use of young people, and work with relevant departments to guide online platforms to improve their content review rules and mechanisms, creating an online language environment conducive to the healthy growth of young people.
(Reporters: Wu Wenqian, Li Jun, Yang Ping, Yang Ying; Shandong Education Television)
Source: CCTV News Client
