Cursive Handwriting This year in the United States, millions of children will receive a birthday card or a letter from a grandparent that they will not be able to read. These cards will be written in a script that is quickly losing its hold in schools across the nation. Currently, over forty-one states do not require public schools to teach cursive handwriting. Many old documents like journals, history records, and books are written in cursive. If the rising generation is not able to read cursive writing, information will be lost. This is especially important in the field of family history research. Cursive handwriting should be taught in school because most historical documents, family journals, and census records are written in this type, additionally, learning cursive helps children with hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills. Cursive handwriting is the script most, if not all, historical documents are written in. In a recent news article in the Seattle Times, former third grade teacher Dorothy Kimble says, “Something is lost when cursive writing is abandoned. Besides losing the unique identifiable quality of the individual’s handwriting, we also lose the ability to read original documents as they were first written. John Hancock’s large signature on …show more content…
“Putting pen to paper stimulates the brain like nothing else, even in this age of e-mails, texts and tweets. In fact, learning to write in cursive is shown to improve brain development in the areas of thinking, language and working memory. Cursive handwriting stimulates brain synapses and synchronicity between the left and right hemispheres, something absent from printing and typing (Asherson),” says Suzanne Baruch Asherson, an occupational therapist writing for the New York Times. Asherson goes on to say that high school students taking the SAT, that wrote in cursive, scored higher than those that wrote in
Kutcher claims, “We haven’t lost romance in the digital age, but we may be neglecting it, in doing so, acquainted art forms are taking on new importance. The power of a handwritten letter is greater than ever. It’s personal and deliberate and means more than e-mail or text ever will. ’’(96)Handwriting is different and unique for each individual. You can look at the letter and judge how much effort a person put into writing it.
Michaela Cullington, a student, wrote a paper “Does Texting Affect Writing?” in 2010 for an English class. The paper is an examination of texting and the belief that it negative effective student’s writing. Cullington goes into detail about textspeak- “language created by these abbreviations”- and their use in formal writings. She organizes the paper in a way that is confusing to understand at first (pg. 1). At the end of the paper, she discusses her finding in her own research which comes to show that texting does not affect writing. But this is contradicting to the information she received from the teachers. The students and the teachers were seeing differences in the use of textspeak in formal writing. Cullington has good support for her
In every society and culture writing is very important by which it allows us to transmit ideas or knowledge for others to see. Writing allows us to look back at information from centuries ago and understand what it was like. According to chapter 12 “The two indisputably independent inventions of writing were achieved by the Sumerians of Mesopotamia somewhat before 3000 B.C. and by Mexican Indians before 600 B.C. Egyptian writing of 3000 B.C. and Chinese writing (by 1300 B.C.) may also have arisen independently” (Diamonds, pg. 218). Other cultures may have adopted writing by ideas inspired by theses writing systems. Diamonds also points out that Sumerian Cuneiform is one of the oldest writing systems. One way the writing system was developed was by using clay tablets to write on by using pointy objects to scratch the surface. He also describes three basic strategies in writing that were used such as logograms, syllables, and letters that are in the alphabet. The alphabet that we use today was developed due to blue print copying. He continued to describe the...
Everyday writing has been done since the Sumerians created cuneiform. Postcards, diaries, letters, to-do lists are all included in everyday writing. Although some people claim we are faced with an inundation of information, and trivial writings should be discarded for the sake of space, it is important to preserve and study these everyday writings, as these everyday writings are part of the United States’ heritage, and studying them enriches our knowledge of rhetorical and historical concepts. (Source F)
Kysilko, David. “The Handwriting Debate." NASBE. National Association of State Boards of Education, Sept. 2012. Web. 16 Dec. 2013.
There are also reasons that cursive should be taught. Studies show it broadens the brain and makes think more while writing in cursive. It also brings out more inner thoughts in the brain. Someday we will need cursive for car signature, loans, student loan, and a lot more things that require cursive. Studies also show that it activates different parts of the brain and shows fine motor skills towards kids.
In conclusion, Cursive writing is very well out dated. We use technology now more than ever. Maybe a new common core standard should be computer skills. As cursive writing holds no benefits to students. The truth comes out, cursive writing has essentially disapeared. So why ever bring it
Handwriting is a means of expressing language, just like speech. However, handwriting is not taught in school as much as in previous years. In the past, handwriting was taught as a precursor to reading and spelling. Today, students of all ages are rigorously tested on their writing skills, yet they are not allowed the time it takes to develop this skill. I remember writing in a Big Chief notebook, holding a chubby pencil, trying my best to make the curves and lines of the letters just right. When I attended elementary school, the teacher devoted at least forty-five minutes to handwriting each day. Handwriting should still be taught in school because it is an essential first step to reading and expressing one’s thoughts and feelings and because of its impact on higher education.
“LOL” and “BRB” are common uses of words that we utilize in our communication. These phrases create a simplicity to our writing and provide enough information to convey our point. While this form of communication would get straight to the point in a general conversation, it is certainly unprofessional in a different perspective. With supporting texts from “The Joy of Texting” by Lynne Truss and “I Won’t Hire People Who Use Poor Grammar. Here’s Why” by Kyle Wiens, they defined clearly that these types of casual writing can ultimately become detrimental in our professional careers. As casual writing has greatly expand towards our daily lives, we should ask ourselves whether this informal writing is affecting our professional lifestyle. With
The simple skill of writing, while something we all possess, has many different impacts on the brain. We think of it as a simple action, yet it can be as manipulative as a drug. Studies over the years have proven this using modern technology. Writing affects our minds in many different ways and in many different forms.
Maria Konnikova states in her article “What’s Lost as Handwriting Fades” that “[I]n alexia, or impaired reading ability, some individuals who are unable to process print can still read cursive, and vice versa.” This fact proves how vital at least a few lessons on cursive writing could be. Children suffering from various learning disabilities will be more successful if they are taught more ways to succeed. For some children cursive will be a real challenge and they would much prefer to use standard writing. For others, cursive will help them remember things more
The main reason why I have so much trouble when writing, is because I don't concentrate
To begin with, cursive gives us the skills we need in life. People have better memory if they have learned cursive. We need to remember how to write cursive and actually think about what we`re writing about. Cursive also helps our brains develop better, it uses the left and right side at the same time. Cursive gives us motor skills, which would have benefits if you want be a mechanic.
Literacy is the ability to read and write. Some people think that teaching cursive writing is frustrating. But it is 50% of literacy. Cursive writing may help those with special needs, keeps our brains active in old age, and we still use it today. In my opinion, cursive should be taught in schools because it can help kids that can’t write regular writing.
In Belize different societies are creating conflicts in order for them to see change, for example the Mayan community fought for their land and the LBGT society fought for their right of freedom. The Mayas took the Government of Belize to court for customary land rights. On court days the Mayas would assembly in the Battlefield park showing their support to the caused at hand. The Mayas had conflict among themselves well because some wanted customary lands while others wanted leased land. Both parties assembled outside the court room to show support while the court case is going on (7 News Belize, June 10, 2009). The Mayas went to court on numerous occasions. They won their case but the Government of Belize does not act in accordance with what the courts put in place so they end up in court repeatedly. The Mayas show the dedication in what they want they refuse to back down until they get their customary land and the Government of Belize abide by what the court put in place. The Maya case is the first of its kinds to go to the Caribbean Court of Justice. Like the unionist in 2005 the Mayan society is making history. The UNIBAM community, defends the rights of Lesbian, Bi-sexual, Gay, and Transgender (LBGT) persons, also went to court, they wanted in section 53 of the constitution because they “believe that at section 53 of the constitution violates their rights to have sexual relations with same sex partners.” (7 News Belize, Dec. 5, 2012). The LBGT community wants equality. Their main focus is that they are like any other human being in Belize and due to that they should be treated fairly. They do not think that they should be judged or treated differently just because their preferences are different from majority of the Belizean...