I'm torn about it if you want to know the truth.
I speak of the death of cursive handwriting, which I read about recently in the Atlantic Wire.
As it goes, many American schools are phasing out lessons in cursive. There is a waning need for it in the modern era, some argue, and the classes take too much time.
The origin of cursive dates back centuries. It's the result of technology innovations using inkwells and quill pens made from goose feathers.
Since the ink dripped when you lifted the quill from the paper, it made sense to connect letters and words together in one flowing line — and the art of cursive writing began.
My mother and father, now in their 70s, were taught to master cursive in the 1940s.
Their handwriting is beautiful still. It is a joy to watch them artfully write out a check.
I grew up in the 1970s, the era of Bic ballpoint pens. Such pens didn't leak and, technically, didn't require cursive writing. But the good nuns of St. Germaine Catholic School still made us master it.
They'd be horrified to see the chicken scratch I write now, though I have an excuse.
I am a product of the electronic era. I do most of my writing on a computer. I've become very fast at keying in my thoughts. When I write by hand, though, I am so agitated by the slowness, I rush it along. My signature looks like surrealist painter Salvador Dali threw up.
Now the debate on whether to continue teaching cursive is growing.
"With technology pervasive in society and fewer documents that need a cursive signature, some educators say there is no need to bother kids with the tedious, time-consuming lessons on cursive," says The Sun of Baltimore.
Curses to that, say others.
Katie Zezima argues in The New York Times that if people are not taught cursive, they'll be more at risk of forgery; printing in block letters is much easier to replicate.
And the development of fine motor skills will be thwarted, she adds.
Besides, she asks, how will people unfamiliar with cursive read historical documents, such as the U.S. Constitution?
That's probably not the best argument in favor of cursive. Fewer people read and abide by the Constitution much anymore.
I'm certainly a proponent of moving forward with innovation and the arguments against teaching cursive have their points.
Heck, I am sitting in a coffee shop writing this column on a laptop computer. Thanks to the Internet and wireless technologies, I am able to run a communications business from anywhere on Earth. I have virtually no need for cursive handwriting.
Then again, I worry that in our eagerness to advance, we will toss out the baby with the bath water.
One of my most prized possessions is a letter written by my father's father in 1924 consoling a woman whose mother had just died. He wrote the letter when he was 21 (he died at 34 when my father was only 3).
I was given the letter in 1997 by the son of the woman my grandfather wrote the letter to. I was struck by how similar my grandfather's style is to my father's — how similar his tone and style are to mine — and moved by the beauty and artfulness of his signature.
I can't imagine a world in which people no longer have a cursive signature — and handwritten letters are no longer left behind for future generations to cherish.
Copyright 2012 Tom Purcell. Tom Purcell, a freelance writer is also a humor columnist for the Pittsburgh Tribune- Review, and is nationally syndicated exclusively by Cagle Cartoons newspaper syndicate. E-mail Tom at Purcell@caglecartoons.com.
Suelee posted at 4:41 am on Tue, Jul 17, 2012.
Not learning cursive will be extremely career limiting. Here is a partial list of occupations you will not be able to work in if you are not cursive literate:
1. Postal worker--until the last cursive writer dies you will not be able to read the addresses on letters and cards to deliver them.
2. Historian--most important historical documents are written in cursive.
3. Health care--nearly all medical records were recorded in cursive until the last couple of years.
4. Law enforcement--again most police reports and other documents were recorded in cursive.
I'll stop here because this list is really long. Why would schools want to limit students' possible occupational choices? Basically, if you cannot read cursive, you are not literate.
chuckles3 posted at 9:14 am on Tue, Jul 17, 2012.
Not learning how to read and do basic math and grammar is a little more career limiting. Let's cover those first.
Leon Ceniceros posted at 9:00 pm on Tue, Jul 17, 2012.
WHEN THE TV DOCUMENTARY ON THE "CIVIL WAR" CAME OUT. WE WERE STUNNED TO SEE THE BEAUTIFUL HANDWRITING OF MANY OF THE SOLDIERS IN THEIR LETTERS HOME. YES, THE WONDERFUL NUNS AND SISTERS MADE US WRITE OUT....O's, S's, AND MY HARDEST TO MASTER......D's.
GOD BLESS THEM FOR THEIR EFFORTS ON OUR BEHALF.
fae4now posted at 3:08 pm on Wed, Jul 18, 2012.
Private thought: why does this guy Purcell annoy me so much?
Public answer: because his articles consistently demonstrate an out of touch-ness that is, well - annoying!
Newsflash! The trend away from teaching cursive has been ongoing for a good 15 years now. That's a whole generation ago!
And it is sad for all the sentimental reasons stated. Here's a weepy moment for you- 23 year old college honors student receives a gift by mail from his 85 year old Grandmother. She encloses a handwritten note. He calls to thank her and then, with some embarrassment, asks what her note said. He had difficulty reading in cursive.
Sure wish Tom would try a little harder to stay current. Based on some of his previously stated views I doubt he would support additional funding for schools to continue to teach the sentimental art of cursive cypher.
sockratties posted at 10:51 pm on Wed, Jul 18, 2012.
Just as using slide rules, chemical photography, callegraphy and writing on stone with chisels, cursive writing has filled a need and will become an arcane pastime. If individuals want to learn cursive writing they can do so on their own dime. Public education is about preparation for life, not learning hobbies.
sockratties posted at 10:56 pm on Wed, Jul 18, 2012.
california leon... a modern teacher would teach you how to use the caps lock/unlock key.