Cursive Writing Disappearing from Public Schools

When I was in third grade, my teacher informed us that we would be learning to write in cursive that year. At first, I was very discouraged about this. I had just learned to write in print a few years before and now they want me to learn something completely different?! However, I quickly discovered that I really like writing in cursive and now, I never write in print unless instructed to do so.
Unfortunately, many public schools are no longer teaching cursive to their students. Recently, Hawaii announced that its schools will no longer be teaching cursive; Indiana and Illinois are two other states that are no longer requiring this education curriculum. Not surprisingly, this trend is causing some debate among American citizens and the line is usually drawn between those who write in cursive now and those who still use print. However, their reasons for their views differ. I talked to several recent college graduates and business owners about their opinions concerning this issue.

Anti-Cursive:
Katlin Owens, a recent graduate from the University of Oklahoma, thinks that schools are right in no longer teaching cursive because “it is outdated. If [the schools] want to replace it with a modern [skill, they could] trade it for PowerPoint or basic Chinese.”
Erin McGrath, a recent graduate from the University of Wisconsin, agrees with Owens and supports the schools that are no longer teaching cursive writing. “I think it is almost pointless to learn [to write in cursive]. I never use it. Almost everything is done on the computer now so I don’t know if I see the point in teaching kids to write in cursive. I mean, I guess it’s good to know how to sign your signature, but other than that, I don’t see the point.”
Pro-Cursive:
Devon Miller, a recent graduate from the College of William and Mary, has a different view: “I think knowing [how to write in] cursive is cool and I would like to see it continue to be taught in schools. But, that doesn’t mean it’s necessary.”
Andrew Jones is the CEO of New Media Fluent and also holds a bachelors degree from the University of Oklahoma. “I’ve been angry about this for a while actually,” Jones said. “I feel it’s disgusting and is doing a great disservice to this generation. It’s a massive step backwards. How are people going to sign their names?”
Personally, I fall into the pro-cursive side of this debate. Besides allowing students to sign their signatures, cursive is also a quicker way to take notes, and to be completely honest, it looks nicer than print. However, I do agree with Owens in that some other skills such as foreign languages or computer sciences could be more useful to students in the future.
What’s your opinion on this controversial issue? Are you pro-cursive or anti-cursive? Why? Share your thoughts with us in the comment section below!