Thursday, April 7, 2011

Nana Mourns a Lost Art

Last week I substituted in a social studies class at the high school.  The teacher had left directions to watch a short video and have students write down fifteen facts.  Not a brilliant lesson plan, but the video was somewhat interesting and because there was accountability to produce notes, the students stayed on task. They were to turn in their notes at the end of the period.  I also wrote down facts during the video and we compared notes as a class.  I wrote my notes on the white board and a student said "Mrs., I can't read cursive."


My teacher-style cursive is easy to read, but more and more these days I have students telling me that they can't read it.  It used to be that only the students who had come to our schools from Mexico couldn't read or write cursive, but that's not the case now. Our students from Mexico usually wrote with clear block printing.  They had never been taught to write in cursive.

Recently there was a story on the news about schools abandoning the instruction of cursive writing.  Since so much writing is done on a keyboard, the thinking is that cursive writing is no longer a useful skill.  Based on my experience in the classroom, even if schools have not yet officially dropped cursive from the curriculum, many students have failed to learn this skill.

When I was first learning to write grants, I wrote them out longhand on yellow legal pads using a number 2 pencil.  I frequently found myself cutting up the pages and rearranging paragraphs.  It was difficult for me to make the transition from writing on a yellow pad to writing on a computer.  Now, years later, I do almost all my writing on the computer.  But, when I'm struggling with words, I frequently pull out the yellow pad and write out ideas.  There's something about the connection of pencil to paper that helps the words flow for me.  Cursive is so much faster than block printing.  When the words are flowing, I don't want to take the time to print.

I realize that there is only so much time in the instructional day, but I'm not sure that the instruction of cursive writing should be eliminated. 

But, maybe I'm experiencing a sentiment similar to what the blacksmiths felt when the automobile was introduced...and we know how that turned out.  Time moves on, things change, but that doesn't mean I have to like it.  I guess I'm settling in to my status as a senior and mourning the loss of the good ole days.

13 comments:

  1. Kids don't know how to write? No handwriting? My God!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I almost wrote on this same topic the other day. You and I are on the same page here. I think handwriting is so important. It seems incredulous to think that schools are moving away teaching it.

    Like you, I also used to cut and paste long before we knew the concept on computers. And, like you, I still get out the notebook and start writing when I can organize or get ideas to flow when writing on the computer.

    ReplyDelete
  3. No, no, no, this is WRONG!!! My jaw is still on the floor as I type - are you serious? I understand the only use for my Pitman's Shorthand these days is to keep my diary private - but cursive writing?? That's just too sad..

    ReplyDelete
  4. Pretty soon you won't even need a teacher in the room -- lessons, assignments and all else will be available via your school's App store.

    I must admit that I have a difficult time writing in cursive when I make out a check (I thought that was required on the line? Does no one write checks anymore either??) because my handwriting is like the kids from Mexico. I write very fast and in all caps.

    BUT...

    Couldn't agree more about pen to paper. Funny, my blog just went up a few minutes ago about a related subject! :-) You should see one of my journals, cut and paste to the ultimate limit lol

    ReplyDelete
  5. Here I am thinking in another direction... sort of. I did learn cursive, though, according to others, not well. I received poor marks in school because of legibility, which over the years has become worse. Bluebook exams in college were dreaded, particularly in English and History class. Even with a keyboard I have difficulty because my mind just races such that my hands can't keep up. Add to that nerve damage and, at times, it is like typing one handed.
    The only thing that scares me about the demise of handwriting is... What do we do when the power goes out.

    What really spooks me is whatever has happened to spelling?

    ReplyDelete
  6. I think it's part of our evolution. With all the technical means of communications these days, people just don't write anymore. Most young people never even fill out a check! They pay everything on line. It's one more of those things that makes us human, that is being swept to the side. It's sad...

    ReplyDelete
  7. Well, that's just a shame. I rarely write letters, or truly, much more than checks or grocery lists...but I do enjoy the look of a page of handwriting. Never could do Palmer capitals properly, but still....handwriting/cursive....to think that it will become a lost art...sad.
    My father and grandmother tried to teach me Copperplate. I admired it, but couldn't do it. And that's all gone now...

    ReplyDelete
  8. With all the emphasis on teaching kids to pass tests, teaching handwriting of any kind has fallen off the plate. When I taught third grade (just a couple of years ago) I taught cursive subversively and those lessons were among the most satisfying times we had together. We don't always pay attention to what gets lost when we let things go. Cursive is much more than handwriting - it's fine motor control, and works parts of the brain that otherwise are still. And it's a way to access the imagination that doesn't exist in quite any other way. I could go on, but I'm trying not to be completely old. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  9. Well Nana, if it's any consolation, my 14 year old can both read and write cursive. She just might be apart of a the minority who can in her generation. Times change, but still...

    ReplyDelete
  10. Ah, but cursive is an art form, and, as art, it will be preserved historically, at least. My mother had the most beautiful Palmer hand I've ever seen. I've noticed my own readable cursive falling away to messy attempts at fast printing that defiles both cursive and printing! Thank you for reminding me to use my art while I still can.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I understand! How about plain handwriting? We just type and take so many shortcuts that we have lost our ability to write longhand.

    ReplyDelete
  12. We teach printing in K and first grade and work with the kids over and over. By the time they reach fifth grade I can't even read their writing. They print and use cursive all in the same word. Their parents are even worse when they sign something. It really is a shame!

    ReplyDelete
  13. In third grade, my sons were taught cursive writers. A few of their teachers in the older grades require cursive writing, but sadly, many of the kids are keyboard happy and don't see a need for cursive. It's a shame to see that skill fade away.

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts with Thumbnails