What do you think? Do you think schools should stop teaching children how to write?

I am not only referring to English language. In the USA, I know there is a lot of conversation
and opinions about cursive writing in regards to no longer teaching it. In fact, I think some
schools have stopped teaching cursive writing.

In a way it makes sense. I almost see a day when no one needs to know how to write with
a pen or pencil. No signature needed. It will all be electronic. Already people scan their
smart phones for purchases, people scan their cc for purchases, rarely do I even see anyone
write a check at a store......even if you give a check, you don't need to write anything on it
at all. I have handed a check at walmart store in the past and I did not even need to sign it.

The best way to answer this question is to conduct an experiment.

Step one: Find a teenage child. It doesn't matter where from, just pull one in from the street, it'll be fine.

Step Two: Place said child in a room without electricity.

Step Three: Watch them go completely insane.

Step Four: Run away before they infect you.

Cursive might be a thing nobody uses anymore, but in general, I think education into traditional things needs to increase. As a rule of thumb, you can apply traditional skills to technology, but not the reverse.

Many schools HAVE stopped teaching cursive writing. I think it is awful! It is part of the "dumbing down of America." What better way than through our children. On the bright side: One of these days us old folks can use it as a secret code!

Thinking about it a bit more, even the teaching of tech is held back by cutting education elsewhere.

Nobody taught me to program. If anyone did, Simon Forrester (staff writer at Amstrad Action) gets the credit...but I basically taught myself, he just helped me refine it.

I learned the nuts and bolts by reading what other people had written, changing it, and finding out what the changes did. This isn't what they teach in info tech classes today, it's what they've always taught in science classes - it's the scientific method.

All learning comes from first principles, you can't skip the first principles.

And what's next then????

Stop teaching Math??????

Why use your brain when there's a calculator available in every smartphone.

Why not stop teaching anything at all when all information is available online???.

Technology should be a tool and NOT!! a substitute,Creativity comes from within and not from copy/paste.

BouldRake wrote:
Cursive might be a thing nobody uses anymore, but in general, I think education into traditional things needs to increase. As a rule of thumb, you can apply traditional skills to technology, but not the reverse.

I do, though no one taught me. It's just how my handwriting is, it's always been like that, comes naturally for me. As far as I remember, cursive wasn't something that you learnt at school here in Spain, they just taught you penmanship.

I totally agree with general education into traditional things. There are so many pupils nowadays whose handwriting is a pain to look at and decipher! I guess they'd rather type everything... so the time when all exams become computerized must be close.

Looking at the bright side though, it will probably mean a lot less work for teachers to grade them.

Edited: It isn't calligraphy what's taught in Spain, but penmanship. Just found out about the difference in English.

Well, that's that debate settled.

The great historical documents in America were written and signed in cursive so I certainly think that people need to be able to read these documents. In order to read cursive, they also need to be able to write cursive. Although I was taught cursive in school, there was no emphasis on beautiful handwriting. I compared my handwriting to my father's and the difference was huge. He was taught the beautiful, flowing elegant cursive handwriting that Thomas Jefferson and our founding fathers used. Everyone should have this ability. Without it, we're all writing in big block letters like a first grader. How tragic.

Hmm, there's a huge difference between a beautiful cursive handwriting and a simply nice penmanship. I don't believe everyone should know how to write cursive, but just being able to write in a legible, decent enough manner, especially when you're not a child anymore... or a doctor, for that matter. xD

I mean, here in Europe we've got tons of ancient historical documents which encompass western civilization's landmarks... but I wouldn't force students to learn how to read and write Greek or Latin in order to be able to understand those documents, unless they wanted to be historiographers (and in that case, they wouldn't need to be "forced"). I myself studied those languages at high school because I chose to, but still wouldn't be able to read a medieval codex (it takes much more than knowing some Latin).

In the same way, if I were a student in the 22nd century, I wouldn't enjoy to be forced to study the roots of computer science, programming, etc... getting to have a good managment of new technologies would be enough for me.

I'd say that juggling education into traditional things and contemporary stuff learning is the key.