Handwriting: Is the art of cursive going extinct?

Kelty Dagley

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In elementary, I was taught how to write in cursive. I loved seeing the curves and flow of this specific
kind of handwriting. I kept at it, and now I frequently write in cursive. A few months ago, I asked my
little sister when she was going to learn cursive. She gave me a confused look and replied saying that her
school wasn’t teaching it anymore. I was genuinely shocked!

What has made schools consider eliminating cursive? Is it the influx of new technology that no longer
requires handwriting? Schools have been removing handwriting classes in favor of typing lessons since
computers and laptops have become more dominant in schools.

Learning to write took up a large portion of our earlier educations, but now learning to type is a fast
process that allows us to get things done quickly. Although the thought of achieving things faster and
more efficiently seems appealing, taking the time to handwrite something gives it a personal touch.

Handwriting a paper, note, or letter takes more time and energy, but it shows that it is important to us.
Therefore, it is more meaningful to whomever it was written for.

Typing up a paper is an easy task to accomplish, but writing takes skill, especially to make it look neat
and legible. There are many benefits that can come from handwriting. Handwriting activates areas of
the brain that typing does not. Handwriting may also contribute to helping children and students
becoming proficient in writing and reading.

People in our day and age have also lost the skill to discern handwriting and handwritten documents. It’s
a sad thought that people can’t understand handwriting from less than a century ago.

Handwriting should be viewed as an endangered art and be given more thought into the significance it
has on the world.