Is Learning Handwriting Still Important

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“Beautiful handwriting is rarer than a Rolex, more respectable than a tailored suit, and is similar to a firm handshake, because anyone can learn to do it.”

Cursive. Longhand. Penmanship. Calligraphy. All forms of handwriting when we use a pen to make notes on paper. Due to the rise of electric devices and the ability to type notes, we’re asked all the time about how important is a student’s ability to write.

We believe good handwriting is not only important, but is possibly one of the most secret advantages a student can have. It’s a cheat code to improve numerous parts of their life that so many others simply don’t focus on.

Here’s 4 reasons we believe that students should have a greater focus on their penmanship abilities.

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1. Study Notes

Let’s start with one of the most important things for students. Their grades.

There’s been numerous studies around the world comparing students that take handwritten notes and compared them to typed notes. All of those studies have found that handwritten notes outperform typed notes by a drastic margin.

When students handwrite their notes, they need to visualise the individual letters, the words they make and the sentence they’re writing. Unconsciously, they need to teach themselves the language of the fact or concept that they’re learning. This means they are learning and revising the content, while they take notes. This helps improve their understanding of the content and helps them retain the information.

When students type their notes, they don’t do this.

A common misconception is that notes are for revision. Notes are actually to help you learn the content as it’s presented to you.

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2. Respect

As the quote at the start says, handwriting is something that everyone can learn to do, but few do. This makes it a rare quality. As it becomes rarer, it’ll become more valuable.

When someone writes with visually appealing letters, we understand that this is a skill that the person has worked on. It’s instantly surprising to see, pleasant to read, and we’re often impressed with the person that wrote it.

We also appreciate the piece of writing much more, because the person who wrote it obviously put more effort into making it. These words are ‘heartfelt’.

The writing causes the reader to have strong, positive emotions towards the words on the page. These are then reflected in how the reader feels towards the writer. Due to the simplicity of this, it seems like a good idea for students to learn this skill.

We have a large focus on how to use words to persuade and influence, but how to present those words is equally as important.

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3. Art

Many believe that handwriting has seen its day and will become irrelevant at computers take over.

I don’t see that happening.

If we consider other forms of art, they haven’t disappeared. People still paint even though there’s graphic designers. People still draw even though we have Photo Shop. People still do photography.

These are often hobbies. Some people make money with them and some pieces of art are sold for millions of dollars.

Handwriting will most likely go into that mix as something that can be highly valuable and sold at auction. Imagine a world where few can write beautifully, and a cursive love letter is sold at an art auction. An expensive piece that can be hung on a wall to radiate a room.

The difference is that’s it’s extremely difficult to paint the Mona Lisa, but anyone can learn to do calligraphy.

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4. History Repeats

The writing’s on the wall.

Back in the caveman days, our ancestors would draw on the cave walls. This is a primitive form of writing. We can then see that these cave drawings were updated to hieroglyphics in the ancient times, such as in Egypt. We’ve since moved to handwriting and typing.

The historical significance of these changes in our ability to accurately communicate are immeasurable.

Nonetheless, we still draw.

This is extremely important, because there is an element of communication in drawing, and even though we can use our words to do this, we still draw. A picture says a thousand words, and perhaps that’s why we still draw.

Handwriting is the updated version of drawing, and drawing’s still around. Why then would handwriting disappear? It’s more versatile than typing is anyway. Much quicker. You don’t need to boot up a computer to do it, and you can ‘feel’ your way through the words much easier.

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If you want to know more about Square Root and our English tutoring sessions, do not hesitate to send us a message or call us on +61 3 9999 2881 or get in contact via our contact page

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