Proposed state bill would require schools teach cursive
North Royalton schools teach subject in second grade
Graphic by MICHELLE FARNHAM
COLUMBUS – The push wasn’t uniform but overall it’s been about five years since the teaching of cursive disappeared in some Ohio schools. A bill floated this month by Ohio Rep. Marilyn Slaby (R-Copley) could change that.
Slaby’s bill is not complicated. It would require school districts to reinstitute mandatory lessons in cursive, required by the fourth or fifth grades.
“If a second-grade teacher thinks her students are ready, that would be fine,” Slaby said.
The North Royalton School District teaches cursive writing in second grade at the three elementary schools – Albion, Valley Vista and Royal View – and has always done so, according to Superintendent Greg Gurka.
“Historically, that’s where we’ve done it,” he said. “Second grade is where they learn the strokes and movements. It carries over into third grade.”
Gurka adds that the district does not require students to continue writing in cursive.
“We teach them cursive, but do not have a mandatory rule that every student from then on has to write in cursive,” he said. “We teach a number of various ways to solve problems. To me this is another example of that. As students grow they adapt and use the method that works for them.”
For Slaby, the matter is rather personal.
“I’m the only former teacher in the Republican caucus,” Slaby said.
Slaby managed to get Rep. Andy Brenner (R-Powell) and 13 others to sign on as co-sponsors. She says the bill is important because of the benefits cursive can play in a person’s education.
“You aren’t just learning to write,” Slaby said. “You’re learning sounds. You’re learning to read.”
She also said that students who take notes in cursive and then type it into a tablet or laptop later benefit from the lesson review.
And, she adds, the U.S. Charters of Freedom in Washington, D.C. are all written in cursive.
She said the push to drop cursive education came from the simultaneous adoption of Common Core standards and the advancement of technology.
“But today, many schools in Ohio do not have a computer room where students can go,” Slaby said. “Some children have homes that are not technologically equipped.”
Slaby says it comes down to one simple philosophy.
“Every child needs to be able to write,” she said. “There may be a day when everything is all tech but it is not today.”
Slaby’s bill is not complicated. It would require school districts to reinstitute mandatory lessons in cursive, required by the fourth or fifth grades.
“If a second-grade teacher thinks her students are ready, that would be fine,” Slaby said.
The North Royalton School District teaches cursive writing in second grade at the three elementary schools – Albion, Valley Vista and Royal View – and has always done so, according to Superintendent Greg Gurka.
“Historically, that’s where we’ve done it,” he said. “Second grade is where they learn the strokes and movements. It carries over into third grade.”
Gurka adds that the district does not require students to continue writing in cursive.
“We teach them cursive, but do not have a mandatory rule that every student from then on has to write in cursive,” he said. “We teach a number of various ways to solve problems. To me this is another example of that. As students grow they adapt and use the method that works for them.”
For Slaby, the matter is rather personal.
“I’m the only former teacher in the Republican caucus,” Slaby said.
Slaby managed to get Rep. Andy Brenner (R-Powell) and 13 others to sign on as co-sponsors. She says the bill is important because of the benefits cursive can play in a person’s education.
“You aren’t just learning to write,” Slaby said. “You’re learning sounds. You’re learning to read.”
She also said that students who take notes in cursive and then type it into a tablet or laptop later benefit from the lesson review.
And, she adds, the U.S. Charters of Freedom in Washington, D.C. are all written in cursive.
She said the push to drop cursive education came from the simultaneous adoption of Common Core standards and the advancement of technology.
“But today, many schools in Ohio do not have a computer room where students can go,” Slaby said. “Some children have homes that are not technologically equipped.”
Slaby says it comes down to one simple philosophy.
“Every child needs to be able to write,” she said. “There may be a day when everything is all tech but it is not today.”