Abstract
In the digital and contemporary world, online communication is part of the daily lives of
many Malaysian adolescents. Net chat, weblogs and threaded discussion groups are some of
the channels through which these young people interact not only among themselves but also
with those outside their circle. Based on the findings of a qualitative study of the writing in
English by a group of Form 4 (Year 10) students in an urban school in Penang, Malaysia,
this paper presents some characteristics of the interaction of a group of adolescent boys in an
online threaded discussion group. The discussion includes the boys’ use of a language hybrid
that mixes local expressions as well as short forms with English and their observation of a set
of ground rules to sustain discussion. Using the features highlighted the paper suggests how
this form of engagement can be used by the Malaysian teacher concerned with improving
school English.