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Cursive handwriting instruction in the United States

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Penmanship style education in the country
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In the United States, cursive handwriting instruction is provided to elementary school children in some schools, with cursive taught alongside standard handwriting. Due to multiple factors including stylistic choices, and technological advancement, the use of cursive has quickly declined since the start of the 21st century.

Cursive has traditionally been used as a way of signing one's name, a signature.

No Child Left Behind

When the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 was implemented, several changes were made to the classroom curriculum. One of those changes, which has been frequently altered, is the requirement for cursive handwriting. The U.S. Department of Education has provided updates of the changes as they are implemented by school systems. The general curriculum states that by 5th grade, students should use cursive exclusively.

Recent events

In 2010, the newly-formed Common Core State Standards for English initiative did not include cursive handwriting instruction. In 2011, 41 states adopted the Common Core standards, thus removing the requirement for cursive instruction in the respective state curriculum. When the system was revisited after the skill was taken out of the core requirements, school therapists reported that some students struggled with manuscript but excelled in cursive writing. Many schools have adopted keyboarding as an alternative to cursive handwriting instruction.

In a 2022 article in The Atlantic, historian and former Harvard University president Drew Gilpin Faust claimed that Gen Z never learned to read and write cursive.

Since 2016, several states have reintroduced cursive writing into their curriculum. As of July 2024, there are 24 states that require cursive writing instruction in public schools.

References

  1. "2008 No Child Left Behind- Blue Ribbon Schools Program". U.S. Department of Education. Archived from the original on January 16, 2011. Retrieved March 27, 2013.
  2. Rueb, Emily (April 13, 2019). "Cursive Seemed to Go the Way of Quills and Parchment. Now It's Coming Back". The New York Times. Retrieved April 15, 2024.
  3. "Tossing the Script: The End of the Line for Cursive?". ABC News. January 24, 2011. Retrieved April 15, 2024.
  4. Morgan, Jessika (March 20, 2013). "New Bill Could Require Cursive Writing In School Again". The Free Press (Kinstin, North Carolina).
  5. "Schools Debate Cursive Handwriting Instruction Nationwide". The Huffington Post. May 30, 2011. Retrieved March 27, 2013.
  6. Faust, Drew Gilpin (16 September 2022). "Gen Z Never Learned to Read Cursive". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on September 16, 2022. Retrieved January 30, 2023.
  7. "The 23 States that Require Cursive Writing". mycursive.com. February 20, 2024. Retrieved April 15, 2024.


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