Many schools have stopped teaching cursive with the belief that typing was a more important skill. This was like throwing out the baby with the bathwater. In a digital era dominated by keyboards and touchscreen, the importance of cursive writing may seem diminished.
There are compelling reasons why cursive writing should be celebrated and taught today.
Cursive Benefits
One of the greatest advantages of cursive writing lies in its ability to enhance cognitive development and fine motor skills. Research suggests that the fluid movement required in cursive wiring stimulates both hemispheres of the brain, promoting better neural connections and overall cognitive abilities. The intricate coordination between the hand, eye, and brain in forming each letter fosters improved dexterity and fine motor skills., which have far-reaching benefits beyond penmanship.
With its flowing and counted letters, students are enabled to write faster and more efficiently. When we write in cursive our pen slides across the paper without having to liftit for each letter. This continuity not only improves the speed of writing, it also facilitates the expression of thoughts without interruptions., improves spelling, and helps build writing endurance. In today’s fast-paced world, the ability to jot down ideas or take notes swiftly is invaluable, making cursive an essential skill for effective communication.
Numbers students have demonstrated the powerful link between writing by hand and improved retention. The physical act of forming letters in cursive engages multiple senses, such as touch and kinesthetic feedback, which enhances our ability to remember information. It’s easy to prove this by asking readers to turn off their phones and recall the last three phone numbers they called. When we type into the computer, the brain knows where to go to find the information so it doesn’t get stored in the same way as when we write the numbers down and manually type the numbers into the phone.
When we write in cursive, we immerse ourselves in the word, activating a deeper connection with the content and adding in the long-term memory recall. In education settings, the integration of cursive writing can be a valuable tool for enhancing learning outcomes. Everyone of my poor spellings improved their spelling efficiency once they became proficient when writing in cursive.
Receiving a handwritten letter or a thank you note makes a bigger impact that email. It shows the person writing the note put more effort in the act. When written in cursive it is more meaningful.
Why is it Needed More Now Than Ever Before?
AI has resulted in a massive number of students bragging how they pass college classes by using ChatGPT. Students are using AI Apps to compose their essays and do their homework. No one, except Elon Musk, predicted how quickly technology would advance in a way that would eventually force teachers to revert back assigning in class essays. Many are requiring students to write their essays in Blue Books in class. Students who were not taught cursive will be handcuffed.
*Blue Books were used in high schools and colleges to prevent students from writing essays at home.