I found this on Slashdot. I found it a great read, and a very real issue.
Handwriting experts fear that the wild popularity of e-mail and IM, particularly among kids, could erase cursive within a few decades. With 90 percent of Americans between the ages of 5 and 17 using computers, it's not uncommon for kids to type 20-30 WPM by the time they leave elementary school. Keyboards, joysticks and cell-phone touch pads have ruined kids' ability to hold a pencil properly, let alone write legibly, says the former president of the International Association of Master Penmen, Engrossers and Teachers of Handwriting.I know I do not use cursive anymore. I had to learn it, but that was about it. I have always printed block letters even when I was learning cursive in grade school.
"The truth is, boys and girls, even if you write a lot of e-mail on the computer, you will always need to write things down on paper at some point in your life," Boell says. "The letters you write to people are beautiful, and they'll cherish them forever. Have any of you ever received an e-mail that you cherished?"This is a valid point. But I have a lot of experience in grading papers (my mother was a teacher) and the majority of kinds did not use cursive on their homework that was not cursive homework. And this was years ago when I graded papers for my mom and the other teachers. If a student used cursive it usually was hell to grade because it was sloppy. But I do agree that kids need to learn correct penmanship.
