Now they want to stop teaching kids cursive handwriting

[SilentKnight]

More and more teachers are choosing not to teach cursive handwriting, focusing instead on keyboarding and other computer-based communication

In today?s Internet-driven world, do kids still need to be taught cursive in school? Is there any point in learning a skill that fewer and fewer of us are using? Or is it still important for kids to learn to write?

http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/is-it-t...ting-1.1147200 (full story)

Anything to make the teachers' job more easy...while we continually pay them more and more for less output.

What happens when the battery goes dead on their electronic gadget? Power outage? Systemic failure. Then what...?

[pornguy]

Pay them more and more? How much do they get paid in canada? in the US I believe the average starting is like 28K

[onwebcam]

There's no need for cursive. Hell I'm not even sure I can write all the letters anymore.

[Barefootsies]

Originally Posted by SilentKnight

Anything to make the teachers' job more easy...while we continually pay them more and more for less output.

Agreed.

I do not have kids, but it seems the local school districts around the country are always looking for more money and teach less. I recall a few years back they wanted money to give every child a laptop to take home. They said that a lot of teachers now-a-days prefer to use computer based lessons and are dropping traditional education techniques.

It's really no surprise that this country's youth are always looking for handouts.

[HushMoney]

I don't care.

[INever]

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

[~Ray]

my cursive sucks... but I learned it.

If that time could have been better spent learning a NEW real world skill, then I would agree.

Typing is becoming a very necessary skill as opposed to only girls who took it back when I was in school.

[Mutt]

teachers get paid big in Canada, and pensions to match. I posted these stats for Canadian public sector salaries versus private sector salaries. You'll see that a high school teacher is making 100-120K a year - elementary school teachers 60-80K

People with good jobs working for the government in Canada are upper middle class, many of them are in the 1% income bracket we heard so much about during the Occupy movement but nobody said shit about it. It's wrong, who pays the salaries of all those public sector fat cats? The average joe making the Canadian average income of $46,000, the people with their own small businesses who risk their own capital and no pension plan.
When I was a kid school teachers made a little better than average income, now they make TWICE the average income - two high school teachers married to each other pull in about $250,000 a year, with about 3 months off a year.

[Penny24Seven]

so you think because they do not teach it the kids just sit there for days LOL hell no they teach them something else. Also it is not up to the teachers on what they have to teach. They have shit they have to teach the kids.
I think it is good, Teach them something they will use, other then my name I have not wrote like that since school

[bronco67]

Originally Posted by SilentKnight

http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/is-it-t...ting-1.1147200 (full story)

Anything to make the teachers' job more easy...while we continually pay them more and more for less output.

What happens when the battery goes dead on their electronic gadget? Power outage? Systemic failure. Then what...?

You know what else? Kids don't know how to spell either, because spellcheck usually does it for them.

[bronco67]

So now its a war against teachers because kids won't be taught cursive writing?

Teachers have a pretty tough job, and they should get paid more than they do. They're doing one of the most important jobs in the country, and cutting their pay isn't going to help anything.

[Barefootsies]

Originally Posted by Brian837

I think it is good, Teach them something they will use,

Such as where and how to apply for government handouts.

Originally Posted by Brian837

other then my name I have not wrote like that since school

Good point. I guess they need cursive to sign d'em gub'nment checks.

[BigChad]

Cursive writing is a waste of time, how often do you really use it?

[Barefootsies]

Originally Posted by BigChad

Cursive writing is a waste of time, how often do you really use it?

A lot more often than....

Creative Writing
Public Speaking
American Literature
Algebra
Earth Science
Biology
Chemistry
Spanish
Religion

.... and so on.... and so on.

[L-Pink]

Don't teach math either, every computer has a calculator. Don't teach spelling every computer has spell check. Don't teach sex ed every kid knows how to find porn tubes. Don't have gym classes every kid has video games.

Just make sure kids know how to upload cat videos to YouTube.

.

[Relentless]

Number of jobs that require 'cursive' as a prerequisite skill?

Hmm.... typographer, calligraphist, tattoo artist...
Am I missing any others?

There are always calculators handy as well... yes they need to be able to add, subtract and divide... but doing long division on 8 digit numbers is something that simply will not be necessary in their lifetimes. At a certain point in the past adults stopped teaching every kid how to ride a horse... because driving a car became a more useful skill.

How about teaching them how to code, speak foreign languages or critically think well enough to vett information being 'given' to them to discern what is valid and what is not valid. Those are all skills BEST taught to grade-school aged children and will serve them much better in their adult life than any form of 'hand writing' ever would.

[Barefootsies]

Originally Posted by Relentless

Number of jobs that require 'cursive' as a prerequisite skill?

How many 'require' you know American Literature, History, Spanish, Biology, Chemistry, Religion, Women's Studies, and so forth? Correct. Next to none unless you choose them as a career. You missed the point.

Yet most people have to do some form of "writing" on a daily basis. Assuming they leave their house. Which is the majority.

[CyberHustler]

Originally Posted by onwebcam

There's no need for cursive. Hell I'm not even sure I can write all the letters anymore.

Cursive always sucked to me, glad it's becoming obsolete

[Lonny]

Originally Posted by Relentless

Number of jobs that require 'cursive' as a prerequisite skill?

Hmm.... typographer, calligraphist, tattoo artist...
Am I missing any others?

I know you asked for a number of jobs but personal life it's needed for signing for packages.
In my case I had postal both Fed ex and UPS tell me not to
print on those handhelds devices number of times.
Documents and deposit slips at the banks. Checks for rent and so on.

I love cursive writing it's printing I suck at.

[Best-In-BC]

Originally Posted by onwebcam

There's no need for cursive. Hell I'm not even sure I can write all the letters anymore.

Yep, ridiculous someone could think its important.

[Some Guy]

Cursive is flat-out antiquated now. In today's world there's really no need for it. Literally the only time I ever use it is to sign checks and even then it's so horrible it's not even legible. My signature is just a scribble. I'm just fine with cursive being shitcanned. Maybe it can be taught later on in an art class like calligraphy or something.

[Boozer]

Stupid question, but if kids no longer learn to write in cursive how would they sign a document?

[xNetworx]

Originally Posted by Boozer

Stupid question, but if kids no longer learn to write in cursive how would they sign a document?

with a pen?

[slapass]

Originally Posted by SilentKnight

http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/is-it-t...ting-1.1147200 (full story)

Anything to make the teachers' job more easy...while we continually pay them more and more for less output.

What happens when the battery goes dead on their electronic gadget? Power outage? Systemic failure. Then what...?

They still know how to print. This is why it is so hard ot make effective change. "I learned so even though no one uses it or needs, you should too." Is not really that great of an argument but here it is being used.

[INever]

WHAT you LEARN has an effect on the BRAIN…..and HOW you learn….and FUTURE COGNITIVE ABILITY...

[GregE]

Originally Posted by CamBoss

with a pen?

Used to draw an "X"?

Maybe I'm old fashioned, but learning how to read and write (even without a keyboard and monitor) still strikes me as being important.

[stinkyfingers]

teach banking

[baddog]

I know schools in Indiana that already stopped. And don't think for a minute that the things you were taught will continue to be taught to your kids. If you think a certain subject is important and the school isn't spending enough time on it to suit you, teach them yourself.

[Doctor Dre]

Quite frankly if i've written down 500 words in the last 2 years that's about it.

[corvette]

nobody could ever read my cursive anyway, my typing is much better...

[Some Guy]

During the holidays I get cards from family members written in cursive and I only understand half of what they're saying anyway.

[Relentless]

Originally Posted by Lonny

I know you asked for a number of jobs but personal life it's needed for signing for packages.

Nobody is advocating people not being able to 'sign their name' but in the very near future 'signatures in cursive' will all go away as a matter of security. It's simply much too easy to scan or forge a cursive signature. In the very near future your 'signature' will be some kind of digital fingerprint + location + spending habits + other data to determine whether the person 'signing' is you or not... and it will be authenticated by your mobile device, not by a pen.

[Relentless]

Originally Posted by Barefootsies

How many 'require' you know American Literature, History, Spanish, Biology, Chemistry, Religion, Women's Studies, and so forth? Correct. Next to none unless you choose them as a career. You missed the point. Yet most people have to do some form of "writing" on a daily basis. Assuming they leave their house. Which is the majority.

You teach a kid cursive, Chaucer and Egyptian Studies. I'll teach another kid how to vett information, how to code and how to speak 3 modern languages. Then we can set them loose in the world and see which one does better. Biology, Women's Studies, Chemistry and Religion are still very relevant areas of learning. In fact, learning Women's Studies and Spanish makes a tremendous amount of sense because of the current demographic growth of those segments. Chaucer? Not so much...

We live in an age where we know more than we can teach. In 30 consecutive years of education you can only cover so many topics proficiently. Choosing WHAT to teach and HOW to teach it is much more important than it used to be. The only *tiny* reason to learn cursive is that it may assist a visual thinker with learning basic language skills, but even in that instance the person would be far better off learning American Sign Language than cursive.

99% of information can now be retrieved in seconds from any location in the world by anyone with a cellphone. Teaching people to memorize that information is not nearly as helpful as teaching people how to find it reliably, who to trust about it and who not to trust about it. That fact will only become more true by the time this generation reaches maturity.

[GregE]

Originally Posted by baddog

I know schools in Indiana that already stopped. And don't think for a minute that the things you were taught will continue to be taught to your kids. If you think a certain subject is important and the school isn't spending enough time on it to suit you, teach them yourself.

Voting in school board elections would help as well.

After all, it would be kinda nice if your kid's peers could read something that your kids wrote on a piece of paper.

[SilentKnight]

Originally Posted by Barefootsies

How many 'require' you know American Literature, History, Spanish, Biology, Chemistry, Religion, Women's Studies, and so forth? Correct. Next to none unless you choose them as a career. You missed the point.

Yet most people have to do some form of "writing" on a daily basis. Assuming they leave their house. Which is the majority.

Yep, I write on a daily basis - court notes, incident reports, employee performance evaluations...to name just a few.

Provincial Court doesn't allow us to take electronic gadgets into the courtroom - all testimony must be made from handwritten notes made at the time.

[Relentless]

Originally Posted by SilentKnight

Yep, I write on a daily basis - court notes, incident reports, employee performance evaluations...to name just a few. Provincial Court doesn't allow us to take electronic gadgets into the courtroom - all testimony must be made from handwritten notes made at the time.

The *only* thing that would make that still be the case when today's youngsters join the workforce twenty years from now is an incredibly strong stenographer's union.

[DWB]

It should be an elective class. You don't need it.

[Helix]

Handwriting Nutters

[Rochard]

I took typing in high school. Now kids know how to type before they know how to spell.

[SilentKnight]

Originally Posted by Rochard

I took typing in high school. Now kids know how to type before they know how to spell.

Back in '78 - I was the only guy who took two years of typing, lol. A lot of guys took it first year, but I found myself the only guy among thirty chicks in the second year. My buddies ribbed me about it at the time - but I had the last laugh. On a good day my keyboard speed is 90-100wpm...plus I got to stare at a lot of nice T&A that second year.

[Mike Honcho]

I remember getting a B because of cursive handwriting and it kept me off the A Honor Roll. Fucking assholes.

[DTK]

Originally Posted by SilentKnight

Back in '78 - I was the only guy who took two years of typing, lol. A lot of guys took it first year, but I found myself the only guy among thirty chicks in the second year. My buddies ribbed me about it at the time - but I had the last laugh. On a good day my keyboard speed is 90-100wpm...plus I got to stare at a lot of nice T&A that second year.

One of the most useful classes i ever took...for both of the reasons mentioned above

[epitome]

I'd much rather my kid learn to accurately touch type than write cursive.

My cursive was great as a kid and illegible now.

It's dying and I am OK with that.

Besides if someone wants to write in cursive its not hard to learn when you're past the third grade which is when I think they teach it.

[adult-help]

i always sucked at cursive. i think it is not needed.we can just use capital letters when we need to write something with a pen

[baddog]

Originally Posted by SilentKnight

Back in '78 - I was the only guy who took two years of typing, lol. A lot of guys took it first year, but I found myself the only guy among thirty chicks in the second year. My buddies ribbed me about it at the time - but I had the last laugh. On a good day my keyboard speed is 90-100wpm...plus I got to stare at a lot of nice T&A that second year.

When I graduated from the 8th grade ('67) they suggested we take a couple high school courses during summer school to get used to the new world. I took Chemistry and Typing. Got kicked out of both within weeks; forget which was first.


For a graduation present my parents gave me a typewriter, which sits by my desk even today.

[NaughtyRob]

I dont agree with it but the ONLY time I ever use cursive is my signature. For probably 30 years.

[SilentKnight]

Originally Posted by baddog

When I graduated from the 8th grade ('67) they suggested we take a couple high school courses during summer school to get used to the new world. I took Chemistry and Typing. Got kicked out of both within weeks; forget which was first.


For a graduation present my parents gave me a typewriter, which sits by my desk even today.

We always had a typewriter (manual Olivetti) in the house from when I was a kid. I could four-finger type 40-50wpm before highschool. I finally threw it out to the curb just a few years ago after it failed the 'do I really still need this cluttering up the place?' test.

Took me forever to learn the proper way, though...all that booty distraction in the classroom.

[mineistaken]

Originally Posted by Barefootsies

A lot more often than....

Creative Writing
Public Speaking
American Literature
Algebra
Earth Science
Biology
Chemistry
Spanish
Religion

.... and so on.... and so on.

Well said. Some idiots here do not understand that its not about "yeah I do not use cursive as well". You do not use serious algebra's formulas as well, should they stop teaching those as well?

[mineistaken]

Originally Posted by NaughtyRob

I dont agree with it but the ONLY time I ever use cursive is my signature. For probably 30 years.

How is that even possible? Don't you ever leave notes? I use hand writing almost every day in various situations.

[ninavain]

Originally Posted by SilentKnight

http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/is-it-t...ting-1.1147200 (full story)

Anything to make the teachers' job more easy...while we continually pay them more and more for less output.

What happens when the battery goes dead on their electronic gadget? Power outage? Systemic failure. Then what...?

paying more??? What teachers are you talking about? Teachers don't make jack shit