Lost Art of Penmanship
[email protected]
Parts are sad. Parts are silly. Parts are damaging. Parts are spot on....
~Kelly
Lost art of penmanship
By Natalie Troyer
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
Published January 18, 2005
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----
Like 8-track tapes, Atari video games and the rotary-dial phone, cursive
writing may soon become a casualty of technological advance, as the word
processor squeezes penmanship lessons from schools nationwide.
Learning the loops of cursive writing might seem like a waste of time to
students and teachers who are accustomed to the computer as the principal
tool of communication. The National Cursive Handwriting Test -- a
75-year-old tradition -- recently was canceled because of a lack of entries.
But educators say cursive writing is a communication tool that deserves to
be upheld in elementary schools today.
Students still need to know how to communicate effectively through good
handwriting skills, said Charles B. Pyle, director of communication at the
Virginia State Department of Education.
"There will still be occasions when students need to express themselves
with pen and paper, and what they write should be read and understood
without a lot of difficulty," he said.
Both Maryland and Virginia's state curriculum for elementary schools
indicate that, by second grade, students should begin making the transition
to cursive writing, using connecting strokes to write continuous text. By
third grade, students are expected to write legibly in cursive, moving from
the instruction level in the classroom to a more independent level.
"The long-term goal is to develop neat, legible and rapid handwriting,"
Mr. Pyle said. "Our standards don't emphasize a method, but expect an
outcome."
Advocates say teaching penmanship has benefits, citing research evidence
of a direct link between the process of learning to write and developing the
ability to read fluently.
"Cursive writing itself was developed because connected strokes help
create a continuous stream of writing," said Dixie Stack, director of
curriculum at Maryland State Department of Education. "When you first look
at cursive writing, it's like trying to interpret a foreign language.
Working at it -- and practicing it yourself -- though, helps you to read
it."
Roger Vanderhye, principal of Spring Hill Elementary School in McLean,
said cursive writing is "not a lost art quite yet."
"We still believe that fluid writing leads itself to thinking ... we've
seen that students' ideas start to flow better when they learn cursive," he
said.
Heidi Hogan, reading and writing specialist at Spring Hill, agrees.
"Keyboarding hasn't replaced cursive," Mrs. Hogan said. "Even with
technological developments, we still feel it's important for students to
know how to write. Most children actually enjoy cursive ... they see it as a
rite of passage or a 'grown-up thing to do.' "
The process also helps students who have problems with reversed letters
in their handwriting.
"Once students make the transition to cursive, they don't make the same
kind of mistakes," Mrs. Hogan said.
Some say reliance on computers is hurting the art of penmanship,
however. According to the National Telecommunications and Information
Administration, 90 percent of Americans children ages 5 to 17 use computers.
Charles Trafford, chief executive of Peterson Directed Handwriting, a
Pennsylvania-based instruction company that sponsored the recently canceled
cursive writing contest, said he was appalled by the quality of entries that
he received from teachers across the country who felt the entries were
examples of good handwriting.
"We had thousands of teachers sending in handwriting samples that could
only be described as garbage," he said. "They were just terrible."
Teacher-education programs might be one cause, instructors say, because
minimal time is spent teaching cursive to future teachers.
"There's just so much content to be taught to future educators that
cursive writing is simply not emphasized in teacher education," said
Patricia Young, assistant elementary-education professor at the University
of Maryland.
More emphasis is placed on using the computer as a tool to aid the
writing process, ultimately placing more emphasis on what students are
writing, rather than how they are writing it, Mrs. Young said.
"We're simply evolving in terms of education ... . We have a more
contemporary tool in computer technology, and we're using that to develop a
child's writing."
Rosa Trapp-Dail, chairman of the elementary-education department of
curriculum and instruction at Howard University, said she doesn't want the
university students to be overly dependent on technology, though.
"Writing is one of the ways you influence the acquisition of early
literary skills to children," she said. "Computers have begun to share
significance. But few urban classrooms have computers for every student ...
penmanship is a conceptual, hand-eye coordination skill, which also needs to
be a part of learning."
Mrs. Young suggests that handwriting basics need to be taught alongside
computer technology.
"When students submit an exam, it'll be handwritten," she said.
"Penmanship and computer skills, therefore, need to run side by side."
Even the SAT college-admissions test still requires each student, at the
end of the test, to copy several paragraphs stating that he or she did not
cheat.
Rather than simply signing a written statement, students are asked to
write out the paragraphs so that the College Board -- which gives the
test -- has a copy of the student's handwriting in case verification of the
student's handwriting is needed later.
Some educators say that the problem with teaching cursive writing today
is that it tends to come behind other curriculum priorities, such as
preparation for standardized tests. Others blame it on the American culture
as a whole.
"We just don't emphasize the importance of handwriting as a culture,"
said Gail McEachron, a professor at the College of William & Mary. "In
England, there is a much bigger emphasis placed on penmanship ... in India
and Great Britain, they don't have as much in technological uses, so more
pride is taken in one's written work and how it is conveyed."
Although the future of cursive writing is not known, some say there will
always be value in learning the old-fashioned art. James Beers, reading and
language-arts professor at the College of William & Mary, said that although
penmanship may be declining, it's not going to disappear.
"Not all forms can be filled out online. Many must be done by hand," Mr.
Beers said. "And, even though more and more people are using e-mail to
communicate with each other, there's still much value to the personal letter
... and that will never go away."
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
~Kelly
Lost art of penmanship
By Natalie Troyer
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
Published January 18, 2005
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----
Like 8-track tapes, Atari video games and the rotary-dial phone, cursive
writing may soon become a casualty of technological advance, as the word
processor squeezes penmanship lessons from schools nationwide.
Learning the loops of cursive writing might seem like a waste of time to
students and teachers who are accustomed to the computer as the principal
tool of communication. The National Cursive Handwriting Test -- a
75-year-old tradition -- recently was canceled because of a lack of entries.
But educators say cursive writing is a communication tool that deserves to
be upheld in elementary schools today.
Students still need to know how to communicate effectively through good
handwriting skills, said Charles B. Pyle, director of communication at the
Virginia State Department of Education.
"There will still be occasions when students need to express themselves
with pen and paper, and what they write should be read and understood
without a lot of difficulty," he said.
Both Maryland and Virginia's state curriculum for elementary schools
indicate that, by second grade, students should begin making the transition
to cursive writing, using connecting strokes to write continuous text. By
third grade, students are expected to write legibly in cursive, moving from
the instruction level in the classroom to a more independent level.
"The long-term goal is to develop neat, legible and rapid handwriting,"
Mr. Pyle said. "Our standards don't emphasize a method, but expect an
outcome."
Advocates say teaching penmanship has benefits, citing research evidence
of a direct link between the process of learning to write and developing the
ability to read fluently.
"Cursive writing itself was developed because connected strokes help
create a continuous stream of writing," said Dixie Stack, director of
curriculum at Maryland State Department of Education. "When you first look
at cursive writing, it's like trying to interpret a foreign language.
Working at it -- and practicing it yourself -- though, helps you to read
it."
Roger Vanderhye, principal of Spring Hill Elementary School in McLean,
said cursive writing is "not a lost art quite yet."
"We still believe that fluid writing leads itself to thinking ... we've
seen that students' ideas start to flow better when they learn cursive," he
said.
Heidi Hogan, reading and writing specialist at Spring Hill, agrees.
"Keyboarding hasn't replaced cursive," Mrs. Hogan said. "Even with
technological developments, we still feel it's important for students to
know how to write. Most children actually enjoy cursive ... they see it as a
rite of passage or a 'grown-up thing to do.' "
The process also helps students who have problems with reversed letters
in their handwriting.
"Once students make the transition to cursive, they don't make the same
kind of mistakes," Mrs. Hogan said.
Some say reliance on computers is hurting the art of penmanship,
however. According to the National Telecommunications and Information
Administration, 90 percent of Americans children ages 5 to 17 use computers.
Charles Trafford, chief executive of Peterson Directed Handwriting, a
Pennsylvania-based instruction company that sponsored the recently canceled
cursive writing contest, said he was appalled by the quality of entries that
he received from teachers across the country who felt the entries were
examples of good handwriting.
"We had thousands of teachers sending in handwriting samples that could
only be described as garbage," he said. "They were just terrible."
Teacher-education programs might be one cause, instructors say, because
minimal time is spent teaching cursive to future teachers.
"There's just so much content to be taught to future educators that
cursive writing is simply not emphasized in teacher education," said
Patricia Young, assistant elementary-education professor at the University
of Maryland.
More emphasis is placed on using the computer as a tool to aid the
writing process, ultimately placing more emphasis on what students are
writing, rather than how they are writing it, Mrs. Young said.
"We're simply evolving in terms of education ... . We have a more
contemporary tool in computer technology, and we're using that to develop a
child's writing."
Rosa Trapp-Dail, chairman of the elementary-education department of
curriculum and instruction at Howard University, said she doesn't want the
university students to be overly dependent on technology, though.
"Writing is one of the ways you influence the acquisition of early
literary skills to children," she said. "Computers have begun to share
significance. But few urban classrooms have computers for every student ...
penmanship is a conceptual, hand-eye coordination skill, which also needs to
be a part of learning."
Mrs. Young suggests that handwriting basics need to be taught alongside
computer technology.
"When students submit an exam, it'll be handwritten," she said.
"Penmanship and computer skills, therefore, need to run side by side."
Even the SAT college-admissions test still requires each student, at the
end of the test, to copy several paragraphs stating that he or she did not
cheat.
Rather than simply signing a written statement, students are asked to
write out the paragraphs so that the College Board -- which gives the
test -- has a copy of the student's handwriting in case verification of the
student's handwriting is needed later.
Some educators say that the problem with teaching cursive writing today
is that it tends to come behind other curriculum priorities, such as
preparation for standardized tests. Others blame it on the American culture
as a whole.
"We just don't emphasize the importance of handwriting as a culture,"
said Gail McEachron, a professor at the College of William & Mary. "In
England, there is a much bigger emphasis placed on penmanship ... in India
and Great Britain, they don't have as much in technological uses, so more
pride is taken in one's written work and how it is conveyed."
Although the future of cursive writing is not known, some say there will
always be value in learning the old-fashioned art. James Beers, reading and
language-arts professor at the College of William & Mary, said that although
penmanship may be declining, it's not going to disappear.
"Not all forms can be filled out online. Many must be done by hand," Mr.
Beers said. "And, even though more and more people are using e-mail to
communicate with each other, there's still much value to the personal letter
... and that will never go away."
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Fetteroll
on 1/19/05 5:04 PM, kbcdlovejo@... at kbcdlovejo@... wrote:
*chose* to write (because she had the freedom to choose).
you lift the pen. Pencils and ballpoint (etc.) pens don't have the problem.
And the more I read anything, the better I understand it. But do I *need*
it? And if I need it then I'll learn it. *If* I have the freedom to do that.
cursive wasn't taught?
(And does it have anything to do with unschooled kids? Or only kids who are
made to write?)
is important.
So therefore anything that's seen as a rite of passage, even if it's not
enjoyed by all nor is actually useful for all, should be imposed on all?
It's only important to keep them on track when there's a track that needs
followed. When there is no track, then there's no need for techniques that
would have kept them on the track.
And reliance on central heat has "hurt the art" of fire building.
And reliance on refrigerators has "hurt the art" of home canning.
No, all that's false. It's just that the art isn't as widely practiced or
mastered. Those who enjoy it are good at it and do it. (Assuming they have
the freedom to do so.)
But it's even sadder to make people practice and pretend they care about
something they're increasingly finding less use for.
systems are *lots* cheaper than computers. For the price of one computer you
could have an great set up of game systems and games. And for the price of
one computer lab you could have an awesome set up! :-)
So because not all students have access to computers the ones that do should
not be dependent? So because not everyone can afford a car, every person
should make sure he can always travel by means that are affordable by all.
done on the computer.
Or is she saying because there are fewer reasons to handwrite that she'll
make sure she holds onto reasons even if better ways come along?
But they could still print.
Many of the arguments are confusing handwriting and cursive.
printing.
or not, just so that it can be compared to another sample of the student's
handwriting.
defined the past fade away because they aren't as useful anymore. There used
to be far more people who could plant a garden, sew clothes, cook from
scratch, butcher a hog, prime a pump, crank an engine ... The time spent
with those things is replaced with other more currently useful things. It's
a *lot* more useful to know how to search with Google than to crank an
engine! Or even write a legible paragraph in cursive.
England most people will recognize the names of the kings and queens better
than most people in America. Different cultures have different needs.
most people don't even own dip pens!
done because others want everyone to hold onto the past.
Joyce
> "There will still be occasions when students need to express themselvesThey could print.
> with pen and paper, and what they write should be read and understood
> without a lot of difficulty," he said.
> "The long-term goal is to develop neat, legible and rapid handwriting,"John Holt showed printing was faster.
> research evidenceMy daughter was writing well before she was reading fluently. But she
> of a direct link between the process of learning to write and developing the
> ability to read fluently.
*chose* to write (because she had the freedom to choose).
> "Cursive writing itself was developed because connected strokes helpBecause people were using dip pens at the time which work better the less
> create a continuous stream of writing,"
you lift the pen. Pencils and ballpoint (etc.) pens don't have the problem.
> "When you first lookWell, yeah.
> at cursive writing, it's like trying to interpret a foreign language.
> Working at it -- and practicing it yourself -- though, helps you to read
> it.
And the more I read anything, the better I understand it. But do I *need*
it? And if I need it then I'll learn it. *If* I have the freedom to do that.
> "We still believe that fluid writing leads itself to thinking ... we'veWhat's his basis for this conclusion? Did they have control groups where
> seen that students' ideas start to flow better when they learn cursive," he
> said.
cursive wasn't taught?
(And does it have anything to do with unschooled kids? Or only kids who are
made to write?)
> Even withCuz we're experts and that should be enough for you to accept what we feel
> technological developments, we still feel it's important for students to
> know how to write.
is important.
> Most children actually enjoy cursive ... they see it as aAnd the kids who don't enjoy it?
> rite of passage or a 'grown-up thing to do.'
So therefore anything that's seen as a rite of passage, even if it's not
enjoyed by all nor is actually useful for all, should be imposed on all?
> The process also helps students who have problems with reversed lettersSo does givig them time.
> in their handwriting.
It's only important to keep them on track when there's a track that needs
followed. When there is no track, then there's no need for techniques that
would have kept them on the track.
> Some say reliance on computers is hurting the art of penmanship,And reliance on cars has "hurt the art" of carriage building and driving.
> however.
And reliance on central heat has "hurt the art" of fire building.
And reliance on refrigerators has "hurt the art" of home canning.
No, all that's false. It's just that the art isn't as widely practiced or
mastered. Those who enjoy it are good at it and do it. (Assuming they have
the freedom to do so.)
> We had thousands of teachers sending in handwriting samples that couldIt is sad when other people don't appreciate something we care a lot about.
> only be described as garbage
But it's even sadder to make people practice and pretend they care about
something they're increasingly finding less use for.
> But few urban classrooms have computers for every student ...Hey, video games are *great* for hand-eye coordination! And video game
> penmanship is a conceptual, hand-eye coordination skill, which also needs to
> be a part of learning.
systems are *lots* cheaper than computers. For the price of one computer you
could have an great set up of game systems and games. And for the price of
one computer lab you could have an awesome set up! :-)
So because not all students have access to computers the ones that do should
not be dependent? So because not everyone can afford a car, every person
should make sure he can always travel by means that are affordable by all.
> When students submit an exam, it'll be handwrittenMany colleges are experimenting with no paper. Homework and exams are all
done on the computer.
Or is she saying because there are fewer reasons to handwrite that she'll
make sure she holds onto reasons even if better ways come along?
But they could still print.
Many of the arguments are confusing handwriting and cursive.
> Even the SAT college-admissions test still requires each student, at theI'm betting it's not required to use cursive. In fact *most* forms ask for
> end of the test, to copy several paragraphs stating that he or she did not
> cheat.
printing.
> Rather than simply signing a written statement, students are asked toSo it's like a fingerprint. It doesn't make any difference if it's readable
> write out the paragraphs so that the College Board -- which gives the
> test -- has a copy of the student's handwriting in case verification of the
> student's handwriting is needed later.
or not, just so that it can be compared to another sample of the student's
handwriting.
> We just don't emphasize the importance of handwriting as a cultureAgain sad when people don't like what we like. It's sad when parts of what
defined the past fade away because they aren't as useful anymore. There used
to be far more people who could plant a garden, sew clothes, cook from
scratch, butcher a hog, prime a pump, crank an engine ... The time spent
with those things is replaced with other more currently useful things. It's
a *lot* more useful to know how to search with Google than to crank an
engine! Or even write a legible paragraph in cursive.
> in IndiaAnd in India they can cook curry better than most people in America. And in
> and Great Britain, they don't have as much in technological uses, so more
> pride is taken in one's written work and how it is conveyed.
England most people will recognize the names of the kings and queens better
than most people in America. Different cultures have different needs.
> Although the future of cursive writing is not known, some say there willCalligraphy is alive and well among those who love the art of it even though
> always be value in learning the old-fashioned art
most people don't even own dip pens!
> "And, even though more and more people are using e-mail toThere's a whole lot more value in anything when it's a choice rather than
> communicate with each other, there's still much value to the personal letter
> ... and that will never go away."
done because others want everyone to hold onto the past.
Joyce
[email protected]
In a message dated 1/20/2005 7:38:58 AM Central Standard Time,
fetteroll@... writes:
"The long-term goal is to develop neat, legible and rapid handwriting,"
John Holt showed printing was faster.
~~~
I think handwriting is not the same as cursive writing. I think of
handwriting as a broader term that encompasses printing as well. Anyone else?
Karen
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
fetteroll@... writes:
"The long-term goal is to develop neat, legible and rapid handwriting,"
John Holt showed printing was faster.
~~~
I think handwriting is not the same as cursive writing. I think of
handwriting as a broader term that encompasses printing as well. Anyone else?
Karen
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
[email protected]
In a message dated 1/20/2005 8:50:03 AM Central Standard Time,
tuckervill2@... writes:
I think handwriting is not the same as cursive writing. I think of
handwriting as a broader term that encompasses printing as well. Anyone
else?
~~~
And you said that, later, in your post. :)
Karen
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
tuckervill2@... writes:
I think handwriting is not the same as cursive writing. I think of
handwriting as a broader term that encompasses printing as well. Anyone
else?
~~~
And you said that, later, in your post. :)
Karen
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Gold Standard
>>It's sad when parts of whatused
>>defined the past fade away because they aren't as useful anymore. There
>>to be far more people who could plant a garden, sew clothes, cook fromAnd the storytellers of our time are specific to the ones who enjoy
>>scratch, butcher a hog, prime a pump, crank an engine ... The time spent
>>with those things is replaced with other more currently useful things.<<
storytelling. I wonder if there was a time when everyone was expected to
know and tell the stories of history before written published language, like
our children are expected to all write. I bet they weren't! I bet it was
just the ones who were good at it because they liked it! Who wants to listen
to a bad storyteller?!
Loved your post Joyce,
Jacki
[email protected]
In a message dated 1/19/2005 3:07:08 PM Mountain Standard Time,
kbcdlovejo@... writes:
-=-"There will still be occasions when students need to express themselves
with pen and paper, and what they write should be read and understood
without a lot of difficulty," he said.-=-
Holly was standing behind me the other night while I was playing a timed game
on the computer, and said "Will you read this to me?"
"When I'm through."
Before my three-minute game was up, she said, "Never mind, I can read it."
I felt really bad, and turned and said, "No, wait, I can help you."
I had thought it was some passage with lots of names or big words, but it was
two lines of my own cursive handwriting I had thrown onto the back of
something she was considering throwing away but didn't know whether the note was
important. It hadn't been written carefully, just for my own use. But she did
figure it out, and it wasn't important.
-=-"Cursive writing itself was developed because connected strokes help
create a continuous stream of writing,"-=-
Right, but they said nothing about fountain pens. The need for connected
strokes has been gone in the public schools since the ballpoint pen became cheap
and commonly available in the 1950's or 60's.
-=-"We still believe that fluid writing leads itself to thinking ... we've
seen that students' ideas start to flow better when they learn cursive," -=-
Weird. It's poetic, but weird.
If kids start to learn cursive at the same point in their lives that Piaget
noticed they started to become analytical, it's just a developmental thing
unrelated.
-=-Most children actually enjoy cursive ... they see it as a
rite of passage or a 'grown-up thing to do.' "
-=-
Well make it illegal for anyone under 21 to do and then kids will be sneaking
to learn it in droves.
THIS IS COOL!:
-=-According to the National Telecommunications and Information
Administration, 90 percent of Americans children ages 5 to 17 use
computers.-=-
Some of those numbers are probably just occasional users at the library or
school, but still it's exciting.
-=-"There's just so much content to be taught to future educators that
cursive writing is simply not emphasized in teacher education," -=-
Bit Raspberries to "so much content."
Maybe they could start with real psychology instead of bunkola like cursive
writing makes thoughts start to flow.
-=-ultimately placing more emphasis on what students are
writing, rather than how they are writing it,-=-
We saw Alexander last night. The narrator was speaking and his scribe and a
couple of scribe's assistants were following him around, parking their stuff
again, and taking dictation. Just thought I'd throw that in.
I wonder how Jesus's penmanship was? He got published without having to sit
down and prepare some papyrus or velum.
-=-penmanship is a conceptual, hand-eye coordination skill, which also needs
to
be a part of learning."-=-
OOOOOoooooh, "conceptual hand-eye coordination *skill*!!!!
Many many syllables for "a thing you do."
They could just play Mario if "conceptual hand-eye-coordination skill" is a
valued goal in itself. They could throw rocks at soda cans.
-=-"When students submit an exam, it'll be handwritten," she said.
"Penmanship and computer skills, therefore, need to run side by side."
Even the SAT college-admissions test still requires each student, at the
end of the test, to copy several paragraphs stating that he or she did not
cheat.
-=-
Didn't when I took it. Kirby took a test the other day that was all on the
computer. Every standardized test I ever took in school involved coloring in
my chosen circle with a #2 pencil and not making any stray marks. Even that
was a conceptual hand-eye coordination skill. If only I could do THAT for a
living, I'd be rich!
-=-"In
England, there is a much bigger emphasis placed on penmanship ... in India
and Great Britain, they don't have as much in technological uses, so more
pride is taken in one's written work and how it is conveyed."
-=-
I see the ellipses there, but there is information missing. They don't have
as much WHAT in technological uses? In India maybe she's talking about
handwritten English. There are MANY different languages in India, with entirely
different writing systems. I don't know if there are "keyboarding" opportunities
to write in Hindi or Tamil.
Hey! I went looking to see if I could find online samples of the scripts, but
found this. Some really cool links at the bottom (LOTS, from all over the
world) about writing systems reforms in various countries, lots of Asian and
European, but others too.)
http://home.vicnet.net.au/~ozideas/windref.htm
There must be typesetting machines. And maybe the computers work with
pull-down menus, as Chinese does. But Tamil is lots of separate little round
things, cute little curlies. And I don't know the name of the script they write
Hindi in, but each word is connected with a line across the top and there are
hangy-down hook-looking things for consonates, and sticky-up little curly
feathery things for vowels (I think).
And though I don't know how emphasized handwriting is in English schools,
their writing is not all involved like our Palmer cursive. It's much more like
our printing, connected a little bit, like italic calligraphy. They called it
"connected up writing" or something. (There are Brits here; help!)
-=-"Not all forms can be filled out online. Many must be done by hand," -=-
Yes! And every one of them says PRINT CLEARLY right up top.
Sandra
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
kbcdlovejo@... writes:
-=-"There will still be occasions when students need to express themselves
with pen and paper, and what they write should be read and understood
without a lot of difficulty," he said.-=-
Holly was standing behind me the other night while I was playing a timed game
on the computer, and said "Will you read this to me?"
"When I'm through."
Before my three-minute game was up, she said, "Never mind, I can read it."
I felt really bad, and turned and said, "No, wait, I can help you."
I had thought it was some passage with lots of names or big words, but it was
two lines of my own cursive handwriting I had thrown onto the back of
something she was considering throwing away but didn't know whether the note was
important. It hadn't been written carefully, just for my own use. But she did
figure it out, and it wasn't important.
-=-"Cursive writing itself was developed because connected strokes help
create a continuous stream of writing,"-=-
Right, but they said nothing about fountain pens. The need for connected
strokes has been gone in the public schools since the ballpoint pen became cheap
and commonly available in the 1950's or 60's.
-=-"We still believe that fluid writing leads itself to thinking ... we've
seen that students' ideas start to flow better when they learn cursive," -=-
Weird. It's poetic, but weird.
If kids start to learn cursive at the same point in their lives that Piaget
noticed they started to become analytical, it's just a developmental thing
unrelated.
-=-Most children actually enjoy cursive ... they see it as a
rite of passage or a 'grown-up thing to do.' "
-=-
Well make it illegal for anyone under 21 to do and then kids will be sneaking
to learn it in droves.
THIS IS COOL!:
-=-According to the National Telecommunications and Information
Administration, 90 percent of Americans children ages 5 to 17 use
computers.-=-
Some of those numbers are probably just occasional users at the library or
school, but still it's exciting.
-=-"There's just so much content to be taught to future educators that
cursive writing is simply not emphasized in teacher education," -=-
Bit Raspberries to "so much content."
Maybe they could start with real psychology instead of bunkola like cursive
writing makes thoughts start to flow.
-=-ultimately placing more emphasis on what students are
writing, rather than how they are writing it,-=-
We saw Alexander last night. The narrator was speaking and his scribe and a
couple of scribe's assistants were following him around, parking their stuff
again, and taking dictation. Just thought I'd throw that in.
I wonder how Jesus's penmanship was? He got published without having to sit
down and prepare some papyrus or velum.
-=-penmanship is a conceptual, hand-eye coordination skill, which also needs
to
be a part of learning."-=-
OOOOOoooooh, "conceptual hand-eye coordination *skill*!!!!
Many many syllables for "a thing you do."
They could just play Mario if "conceptual hand-eye-coordination skill" is a
valued goal in itself. They could throw rocks at soda cans.
-=-"When students submit an exam, it'll be handwritten," she said.
"Penmanship and computer skills, therefore, need to run side by side."
Even the SAT college-admissions test still requires each student, at the
end of the test, to copy several paragraphs stating that he or she did not
cheat.
-=-
Didn't when I took it. Kirby took a test the other day that was all on the
computer. Every standardized test I ever took in school involved coloring in
my chosen circle with a #2 pencil and not making any stray marks. Even that
was a conceptual hand-eye coordination skill. If only I could do THAT for a
living, I'd be rich!
-=-"In
England, there is a much bigger emphasis placed on penmanship ... in India
and Great Britain, they don't have as much in technological uses, so more
pride is taken in one's written work and how it is conveyed."
-=-
I see the ellipses there, but there is information missing. They don't have
as much WHAT in technological uses? In India maybe she's talking about
handwritten English. There are MANY different languages in India, with entirely
different writing systems. I don't know if there are "keyboarding" opportunities
to write in Hindi or Tamil.
Hey! I went looking to see if I could find online samples of the scripts, but
found this. Some really cool links at the bottom (LOTS, from all over the
world) about writing systems reforms in various countries, lots of Asian and
European, but others too.)
http://home.vicnet.net.au/~ozideas/windref.htm
There must be typesetting machines. And maybe the computers work with
pull-down menus, as Chinese does. But Tamil is lots of separate little round
things, cute little curlies. And I don't know the name of the script they write
Hindi in, but each word is connected with a line across the top and there are
hangy-down hook-looking things for consonates, and sticky-up little curly
feathery things for vowels (I think).
And though I don't know how emphasized handwriting is in English schools,
their writing is not all involved like our Palmer cursive. It's much more like
our printing, connected a little bit, like italic calligraphy. They called it
"connected up writing" or something. (There are Brits here; help!)
-=-"Not all forms can be filled out online. Many must be done by hand," -=-
Yes! And every one of them says PRINT CLEARLY right up top.
Sandra
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
julie w
>-=-"When students submit an exam, it'll be handwritten," she said.Unfortunately the SAT's will be requiring a handwritten essay which,
>"Penmanship and computer skills, therefore, need to run side by side."
>Even the SAT college-admissions test still requires each student, at the
>end of the test, to copy several paragraphs stating that he or she did not
>cheat.
>-=-
>
>>>>Didn't when I took it. Kirby took a test the other day that was all on the
>computer. Every standardized test I ever took in school involved coloring in
>my chosen circle with a #2 pencil and not making any stray marks. Even that
>was a conceptual hand-eye coordination skill. If only I could do THAT for a
>living, I'd be rich!<<<<<
>
from what I understand, is very hard to get around and use a laptop if
you have disabilities...that could be overreaction on some of the LD
sites I frequent.
http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/newsat/prep/writing/essay/pracStart.html?essay
Though the collegeboard site does list computer without spell
check/grammar/cut & paste features as an accommodation.
http://www.collegeboard.com/ssd/student/accom.html
They also have scribe and reader listed. Of course it looks like you
need to have documented disabilities and had have to have used the
accommodations in school. I wonder what they do with homeschoolers who
have neither had IEPs nor been tested for disabilities.
But one does not need to take the SATs to go to college anyway right?
Julie W in AR
>--
>
>
>
No virus found in this outgoing message.
Checked by AVG Anti-Virus.
Version: 7.0.300 / Virus Database: 265.7.1 - Release Date: 1/19/2005
[email protected]
In a message dated 1/20/2005 12:37:38 PM Mountain Standard Time,
jjjwoolfolk@... writes:
But one does not need to take the SATs to go to college anyway right?
--------
For some you do, but you can go to another college first and get some
practice.
I know they've added an essay, but the article wasn't talking about that.
The article seemed to be suggesting a writing sample/affidavit had always been
part of it and it hasn't, and that tests are always handwritten, and many
aren't.
Sandra
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
jjjwoolfolk@... writes:
But one does not need to take the SATs to go to college anyway right?
--------
For some you do, but you can go to another college first and get some
practice.
I know they've added an essay, but the article wasn't talking about that.
The article seemed to be suggesting a writing sample/affidavit had always been
part of it and it hasn't, and that tests are always handwritten, and many
aren't.
Sandra
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]