Free Republic

Cursive writing has fallen away from the curriculum in a lot of Texas schools in recent years, but the writing style is making a comeback. Austin ISD does not teach cursive to its general student body, but the district says that will change in the 2019-2020 school year, as it will for schools all over the state. The shift is due to updates to the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills, or TEKS, for language arts. The State Board of Education changed the requirements in 2017, and they go into effect next school year. Starting this fall, students will be required...

Louisiana’s public school classrooms will be required to teach cursive writing to students starting with the new school year. That mandate, approved by lawmakers in 2016 but delayed a year so schools could prepare, is among more than two dozen new laws

When it comes to the matter of educating children, the state of Ohio and the federal government are run by a host of blithering idiots. It was over a year ago that I learned the state of Ohio will no longer be teaching cursive writing in their classrooms. Upon first learning of the announcement, I foolishly believed that the state’s educators might eventually return to their collective senses and re-institute the teaching of this critical skill.

I have been computer-less at home for five weeks. My brand-new laptop went belly up and had to be sent back. During the frustrating wait (which I suspect will lead to a later column), I have returned to writing with a pen and spiral notebook. It's been a flash to the past, reminding me of my younger days when every assignment, story and poem were handwritten. Are the days of writing by hand on their way out? Having beautiful, cursive handwriting used to be a source of immense pride. Handwriting skills were taught right alongside reading and math. Prizes were...

A single sentence, uttered in the trial of George Zimmerman for the shooting of teenager Trayvon Martin, has catapulted an issue into the national spotlight. When asked if she could read a letter in court, witness Rachel Jeantel, her head bowed, murmured with embarrassment, "I don't read cursive," according to court testimony. Is it any surprise that cursive -- the looped, curvaceous style of handwriting that's been a mainstay of education for generations -- is all but dead? [15 Weird Things We Do Everyday, and Why] "Cursive should be allowed to die. In fact, it's already dying, despite having been...