Strategies of the Millennial Teachers in Decoding Generation Alpha Social Media Slang

This research explored how millennial teachers decode social media slang utilized by Generation Alpha. Employing a qualitative methodology, it aimed to uncover the meanings behind the gathered social media posts, the purpose for sharing them, and the strategies of the teachers in decoding these terminologies. The study involved five Generation Alpha learners and five millennial teachers from Mayon National High School. Data was collected from five social media posts made by the Generation Alpha learners, along with focus group discussions and semi-structured interviews. Content and thematic analysis were employed to interpret the data. The researcher identified five slang terminologies from the learners' social media accounts which serve as the corpus of the study. The terms “skibidi,” “fanum tax,” “gucci,” “gyatt,” and “rizz” were identified and was used as reference for the focus group discussion. The five learners, aged between 12 and 13, were invited to explain the meanings of these slang and their reasons for sharing them, which revealed themes such as self-expression, social connection, knowledge sharing, and entertainment. Millennial teachers utilized strategies like digital literacy, contextual understanding, active listening, and questioning to effectively decode the Generation Alpha slang. From the study's findings, the researcher recommended that millennial teachers become familiar with the slang terms used in academic contexts and encouraged learners to start using Generation Alpha slang in their posts for purposes of self-improvement, educational outcomes, community involvement, cultural enrichment, and marketing initiatives.