This study examines the influence of social media language on students’ grammar and writing skills at the College of Education Technical, Mopa and Confluence University of Science and Technology, Osara Kogi State. With the growing usage of social platforms such as WhatsApp, Twitter/X, and Instagram, informal language patterns, abbreviations, emojis, and non-standard spellings have increasingly filtered into academic writing. Using a mixed-methods approach, the study collected data from 200 students and 10 lecturers via questionnaires, writing tasks, and interviews. The findings reveal that social media language significantly affects students’ ability to write grammatically correct and coherent essays. While some digital literacy skills were found to enhance creative expression, the majority of students frequently transferred informal digital expressions into their formal academic writing. The study recommends targeted academic writing programmes and awareness campaigns to promote register sensitivity and metalinguistic awareness among students.
Keywords: Academic Writing, Grammar, Higher Education, Nigeria, Social media, digital influence, student language
