The format of a My Take is 150 words – no more, no less – to express an opinion on a different topic each week. This week’s topic was cursive writing.
By Ruby Pratka
When I read that Ontario planned to reintroduce cursive writing in schools, my palms started to sweat. When I was younger, my fine motor skills weren’t as developed as those of my classmates. Learning cursive in Grade 2 was obviously a challenge — but no adult said “Hmm, this child has trouble forming letters, maybe she needs help.” To hear teachers tell it, my inability to form a cute little boat at the bottom of a capital T meant I was lazy, sloppy, immature or not that bright. My classmates picked up on adults’ open mockery of me and others with bad handwriting. I don’t understand why bad handwriting is equated with character flaws.
Does cursive develop motor skills and make students think about their writing more? It probably does. But if it returns, it needs to stay a skill – not an arbiter of moral character.
