The end of the written word?
Most parents have come to the realization that handwriting in schools is now
dead.
We surrender to a more mechanical, non-human expression of ourselves.
Will a simple handwritten note look like hieroglyphics to the next generation?
Many studies show a direct correlation between writing and intelligence.
Writing by hand forces the person to slow down and reflect their thoughts, thus
enhancing the learning process. The written word reveals our individuality, our
culture and ultimately our soul.
Philip Hensher's "The Missink Ink : The Lost Art of Handwriting, and Why it Still
Matters"gives an eloquent argument for writing to remain a part of our lives. He
writes,"Ink runs in our veins, and shows the world what we are like." Hensher
pays tribute to the warmth and personality of the handwritten love note,
postcards sent home, and daily diary entries.
Everyone should rediscover the joy of writing. Our schools should reinstate it.
Individual states such as California include manuscript in grade 2 and cursive in
grades 3 and 4. Massachusetts also include cursive in their standards; they
require legible handwriting(either manuscript or cursive) in fourth grade.
Unfortunately, our culture demands everything be test and assessment ready.
Should our local schools reintroduce handwriting to our students? Let us know.
We as parents can take a stand and shape our children's future.
Rick Kephart
8:27 am on Wednesday, October 31, 2012
I agree completely! Handwriting is a very important skill, which needs to be taught more. I do use a keyboard more than I write, but there is a time and place for handwriting.
Even though a printed letter can be easier to read, it is always cold and impersonal. And if it's printed with a handwriting font - that's just tacky, on top of being impersonal.
A nicely-hand-written letter, with a fountain pen or steel pen, is impressive!
I think what started the decline of handwriting was the ball-point pen. Unlike a fountain pen, a ball-point pen needs pressure to be applied when writing, which interferes with the flowing nature that handwriting should have.
I went to school after the ball-point pen had completely replaced the fountain pen (my desks in grammar school still had inkwells, but nobody used them any more and most people didn't even know what they were). I never used a fountain pen until I was an adult, and then I realized how much had been lost when people went to the convenience of the ball-point pen. I wish I had had a fountain pen when I was in school!
Kids should still be taught to have beautiful handwriting. Like learning to play a musical instrument or draw or paint, it's not a skill that's used everywhere all the time, but it is something good to be able to do when the time and place for it comes up.