Anti-cursive Editorial

[Brilliant Bill]

This Trenton, NJ newspaper editorial speaks against handwriting education. "Forcing students to learn penmanship has about as much value as making them learn how to repair a stagecoach," they say...

http://www.nj.com/opinion/index.ssf/...ys_digita.html

[jar]

If there is not enough time during school hours, add school hours.

[Paddler]

No big deal. You can learn to read cursive in about 15 minutes, if the writer has done his/her part.

You can repair a stagecoach too, if your parents have taught you some basic mechanical and woodworking skills.

[Paddler]

No big deal. You can learn to read cursive in about 15 minutes, if the writer has done his/her part.

[Brilliant Bill]

No big deal. You can learn to read cursive in about 15 minutes, if the writer has done his/her part.

You can repair a stagecoach too, if your parents have taught you some basic mechanical and woodworking skills.

I agree!

[Wile E Coyote]

They can't read analog clocks either. Never mind vernier scales.

[pajaro]

Struggling to find a polite response . . . sheeple.

[TSherbs]

This is my favorite part of this editorial, and I agree completely: "When it comes to setting curriculum priorities, most of the time we would rather leave decisions in the hands of the teacher and the local administration than in the hands of legislators."

I have written about this elsewhere. Rarely is legislation about curricular requirements in schools (written by lawmakers, not educators) motivated primarily about actual deep interest for the futures of the children. More often it is political grandstanding, and at worst, meddling in matters beyond their professional understanding.

ps: I am a teacher.

[Kaputnik]

From the linked editorial: "Admit it, grownups: How many of us spent the entire third grade grappling with those weird Q's and G's, and then never, ever used cursive again in our lifetimes? "

Third grade only? I wonder what year that was. In the 1960s we had cursive as a graded subject from grades 3 to 6. Actually, it would have been grades 2 to 6, but I had just moved from a state where they started in third grade, so I had to do some catching up. And although I've been required to print for certain purposes, such as keeping log books in the Navy, I never gave up on cursive entirely.

I'm willing to consider the possibility that there is not enough class time to spare on learning to write cursive (which takes considerably more than fifteen minutes). Indeed, I'm not sure how well most people can learn to read it in that time. But that could lead to a discussion of how wisely the rest of their classroom time is being spent. In speaking with teenagers, I am more frequently worried by their knowledge of history, geography, and what we used to call civics than by their inability to read longhand.

I suspect that there really is time for adequate longhand instruction, and what the students do with it later in their lives is up to them. But it's only part of a much bigger picture.

[Lady Onogaro]

The attitude that the writer expresses explains why we also give students no time for recess, art, or music (except for marching band for the football).

They probably wonder why kids have an obesity problem, too.

[Brilliant Bill]

This is my favorite part of this editorial, and I agree completely: "When it comes to setting curriculum priorities, most of the time we would rather leave decisions in the hands of the teacher and the local administration than in the hands of legislators."

I have written about this elsewhere. Rarely is legislation about curricular requirements in schools (written by lawmakers, not educators) motivated primarily about actual deep interest for the futures of the children. More often it is political grandstanding, and at worst, meddling in matters beyond their professional understanding.

ps: I am a teacher.

Teachers are the best people!! Thanks for what you do.

[TSherbs]

The attitude that the writer expresses explains why we also give students no time for recess, art, or music (except for marching band for the football).

They probably wonder why kids have an obesity problem, too.

I know what you mean, but I rather think that this is the result of budgets (insurance, legal fees, construction, benefits especially) increasing faster than communities are willing to go, and with high stakes testing becoming the primary way that schools and educators are evaluated--and that was a political decision from lawmakers, not educators. High stakes testing doesn't give a s-- about the arts or PE. This is one of the several problems with the testing.

[VertOlive]

The Stupid marches on.

This article reflects the thinking of what I call the D.U.P.E.s--the Dominant Utilitarian Paradigm Enactors. Common Core states an emphasis on "preparing students for the workplace".

My 10 yr old and I went through the book Cursive Logic over a summer for a few minutes a day, a few days a week. He can now read and write in cursive.

Priorities.

[TSherbs]

The Stupid marches on.

My 10 yr old and I went through the book Cursive Logic over a summer for a few minutes a day, a few days a week. He can now read and write in cursive.

Priorities.

My school still teaches connected writing (and I am glad that we do), but I am against lawmakers enacting requirements that directly dictate curriculum decisions. That, to me, is putting the unprofessional (your word "stupid") in charge. Let the professionals decide.

[sgtstretch]

But Common Core, and No Child Left Behind.

On paper, it may look good to "the stupids" but it never works that way in the real world. Whether its taught in school or not, my children will learn cursive.

[VertOlive]

Check out Cursive Logic. It was originally a kickstarter project, now used by homeschoolers....

[sgtstretch]

Check out Cursive Logic. It was originally a kickstarter project, now used by homeschoolers....

Ashley wants me to pick that up for her, she doesn't remember much cursive, and has been enjoying watching me write with it.

[R.A. Stewart]

This Washington Post story offers a different perspective, including references to research that points to cognitive benefits of writing in cursive.

~Rich

[TSherbs]

This Washington Post story offers a different perspective, including references to research that points to cognitive benefits of writing in cursive.

~Rich

Not exactly. The study was about handwriting (non-specific) versus typing. The study did not look at cursive versus printing. There is very little evidence that cursive has any neurological or learning benefit over printing. Learning cursive simply means that you learn cursive, which isn't a bad thing. But the degree to which people cling to it and value it is a cultural phenomenon, not a scientific or particularly educational (in terms of improving the quality of learning) one.

[Jon Szanto]

This is my favorite part of this editorial, and I agree completely: "When it comes to setting curriculum priorities, most of the time we would rather leave decisions in the hands of the teacher and the local administration than in the hands of legislators."

I have written about this elsewhere. Rarely is legislation about curricular requirements in schools (written by lawmakers, not educators) motivated primarily about actual deep interest for the futures of the children. More often it is political grandstanding, and at worst, meddling in matters beyond their professional understanding.

ps: I am a teacher.

Hear, hear! Teachers are my heroes, and always have been. I try to do them proud when I teach my private music students. Thank you, TSherbs, and any other teachers on the forum (I think Dreck is one).