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Learning how to write fluently on paper and the ability to read older source documents is a skill. Learning that Columbus showed up in 1492 is trivia. Public

Learning how to write fluently on paper and the ability to read older source documents is a skill. Learning that Columbus showed up in 1492 is trivia. Public school spends >50% of time on trivia, and skills are being removed. I consider written language a part of a language culture. Getting rid of cursive writing is like telling people they can't speak Spanish because it's an outdated language and everyone should just use English because it's more modern, and all the computer stuff is in English anyway.

PhasmaFelis 8y ago
Latin would be a better comparison than Spanish here. It has its uses, but it's very situational these days and most modern people will never need it.
- leetcrew 8y ago
  most people will never need Latin in the sense that they are unlikely to read original works written in Latin unless they become a classics professor. you could say the same thing about most classes in elementary through high school. rarely if ever do I directly apply my knowledge from biology, history, english lit, etc. once we start looking at indirect applications, I think Latin and Greek are easily as useful as any other subject. even if you can't read them fluently, having a firm grasp of grammar and vocab in these languages is a huge advantage when it comes to proficiency in English. complex terminology in other fields becomes much easier to understand when you know the roots.
- ravenstine 8y ago
  Even Latin still makes sense to learn in some capacity. It's obsolete(or dead, really) as a form of communication, but it's still helpful to know in order to better understand the words that we use today, many of which stem from Latin. Understanding etymology and some Latin has helped me understand the meaning of words without even having to look them up. Cursive, on the other hand, still exists for its own sake. It's an obsolete skill because few people write actual letters anymore or rely on handwriting often. We still use English every day, which is why learning Latin is a better use of one's time than to learn cursive.
  - PhasmaFelis 8y ago
    I imagine it has practical value for historians who have to read cursive documents, and as an art form it's just as valid as any other sort of calligraphy. But yeah, outside of a few narrow areas it doesn't have much modern use.
sandworm101 8y ago
>> Learning how to write fluently on paper and the ability to read older source documents is a skill. No. It is two skills. Cursive isn't a language. It is a script, a simple transposition of symbols. Anyone who can read english type can learn to read cursive, to access those older source documents, in a matter of hours. Writing cursive is a totally different thing, a collection of muscle memories that take years to acquire. The former is an important but easy skill to master, the later is difficult but increasingly irrelevant.

PhasmaFelis 8y ago

Latin would be a better comparison than Spanish here. It has its uses, but it's very situational these days and most modern people will never need it.

leetcrew 8y ago
most people will never need Latin in the sense that they are unlikely to read original works written in Latin unless they become a classics professor. you could say the same thing about most classes in elementary through high school. rarely if ever do I directly apply my knowledge from biology, history, english lit, etc. once we start looking at indirect applications, I think Latin and Greek are easily as useful as any other subject. even if you can't read them fluently, having a firm grasp of grammar and vocab in these languages is a huge advantage when it comes to proficiency in English. complex terminology in other fields becomes much easier to understand when you know the roots.
ravenstine 8y ago
Even Latin still makes sense to learn in some capacity. It's obsolete(or dead, really) as a form of communication, but it's still helpful to know in order to better understand the words that we use today, many of which stem from Latin. Understanding etymology and some Latin has helped me understand the meaning of words without even having to look them up. Cursive, on the other hand, still exists for its own sake. It's an obsolete skill because few people write actual letters anymore or rely on handwriting often. We still use English every day, which is why learning Latin is a better use of one's time than to learn cursive.
- PhasmaFelis 8y ago
  I imagine it has practical value for historians who have to read cursive documents, and as an art form it's just as valid as any other sort of calligraphy. But yeah, outside of a few narrow areas it doesn't have much modern use.

sandworm101 8y ago

>> Learning how to write fluently on paper and the ability to read older source documents is a skill. No. It is two skills. Cursive isn't a language. It is a script, a simple transposition of symbols. Anyone who can read english type can learn to read cursive, to access those older source documents, in a matter of hours. Writing cursive is a totally different thing, a collection of muscle memories that take years to acquire. The former is an important but easy skill to master, the later is difficult but increasingly irrelevant.