Cursive Writing

Wow, JDF, you sure get fired up about things.

No one here has argued against teaching penmanship or writing skills--just that cursive is outdated.

Believe it or not, many of us--including homeschool parents--strongly desire our children to aspire to excellence with regards to their written communication skills.

But outside of acheiving legibility and teaching the basic mechanics of writing, the main emphasis should be on content over appearance.

 

I agree. The only cursive I EVER use anymore is my signature... And that's not so much cursive as it is a sketch. Once I took architecture/drafting classes in high school I never went back to cursive! In fact, ever since then I have only printed in all-caps, no lower case. Hmmm... I wonder what psychological profile that fits...

 

Based on your statements in this thread and by extension of your statement above, I imagine that you daily find more reasons to justify most everything you do, no?

 

It isn't being deceptive. This thread is about cursive writing.

 

I'll just let you think about that one for a minute.

What's the point of mastering content if you can't express it properly?

 

Why are you misrepresenting what I'm saying? I'm talking about cursive writing, which is antiquated. I really don't see why you feel the need to misrepresent what people are saying.

 

It seems your argument is missing the point. I think we might say that the proper way is not necessarily in 'cursive'. It's hard to know when to take you seriously when your comments are so funny... at least I think you are trying to be funny, no?

 

OK...I've thought about it. You have two more wishes.

Since when is neat printing "improper expression?"

If we follow your example, shouldn't we return to Old English calligraphy? I mean, it would take a week to write a paragraph; but boy, would it be nice-looking...

My kids will be good writers. I will make sure of that. However, I'm not spending a great deal of time teaching them to master a form of writing that is simply no longer needed for effective communication.

 

Cursive is NOT antiquated. I use it every day, both at my call center job, in college, and in my personal life.

 

But Paul, wouldn't you agree that statistically, you are in the distinct minority? Wouldn't you agree that a vast majority of folks do not use cursive writing anymore?

I'm not saying it's wrong to use it (I'm quite sure you know my point). I'm just saying it's no longer a necessary component of good writing.

Beyond the standard of legibility (a much easier standard to acheive with printing), I choose content over form.

 

That's like saying phonographs aren't antiquated because I have one in my living room.

All that means is that you use it. A lot of adults, especially older ones use it. I myself (relatively young adult) use it most of the time.

It's still antiquated. It's no longer an important skill. It doesn't help children learn or succeed. If parents want their kids to write in cursive, then let parents teach them.

If a child never learns cursive, it's not a big deal.

 

I learned cursive writing in what you might call grade 5, but never achieve efficiency. I printed everything. I never did learn cursive writing on the typewriter!

I say learn everything, and use your noodles. What you learn is your responsibility and not any school can teach that.

Cheers,

Jim

 

Of course it's not antiquated. People use it every day.

 

Scary

Wow, the mindset that our schools are inducing is so circumscribed. It portends disaster ahead.

 

What people need to learn to-day is how to speak. Just listen. Every thought is interrupted with, "you know". I went to the store, you know, and, you know, they were, you know, closed,you know.

Drives me bonkers! People would be further ahead to learn how to speak than whether or not they had curves joining each letter as they write.

Cheers,

Jim

 

Like I said, that's another reason we homeschool. If schools aren't going to teach the basics, then how can we trust them to teach more advanced things?

 

Math is basic. Language arts are basic. Fine arts (I would argue) are basic. Writing is basic. Cursive handwriting is not basic.

I'm okay with your decision to homeschool. I was homeschooled myself and, while I certainly missed out on a lot, I know many homeschooling parents do so very well.

Cursive is not higher-level learning. It does not set the stage for future higher-level learning. To spend much time on it at all is, quite frankly, a waste. If children can print legibly and, more important, formulate their ideas and express them in cohesive ways that represent high cognitive levels, we shouldn't be worried about teaching script writing to a computer-based society.

 

I disagree. Writing is among the most basic of basics.

Gee, thanks.