VOA教育报道2024--Handwriting Returns in California Schools

Handwriting Returns in California Schools

　　Starting this year, six- to twelve-year-olds in California will be required to learn cursive handwriting.

　　The return to handwriting comes after many years in which typing on computer keyboards was taught and handwriting was pushed aside.

　　Cursive is a kind of handwriting in which all the letters in a word are connected to each other.

　　Assembly Bill 446 requires that handwriting be taught to 2.6 million Californian students in grades one through six. And it requires cursive lessons in grades three and above.

　　Former elementary school teacher Sharon Quirk-Silva supported the bill and California Governor Gavin Newsom signed it into law in October.

　　Experts say learning cursive improves brain development, reading skills, and hand movement. Some educators also find value in teaching children to read historic¹ documents and family letters from past generations.

　　Pamela Keller teaches grades four to six at Orangethorpe Elementary School in Fullerton about 50 kilometers southeast of Los Angeles. She said she was already teaching cursive before the law took effect on January 1.

　　Some children complain about the difficulty, but Keller has a ready answer:

　　"We tell them, well, it's going to make you smarter, it's going to make some connections in your brain, and it's going to help you move to the next level. And then they get excited because students want to be smarter. They want to learn," Keller said.

　　During a recent visit to the school library, Keller said one student got excited seeing an image of the U.S. Constitution, written in 1787, saying, "It's cursive!"

　　Several of Keller's students say the subject was difficult, like the letter Z, but they enjoyed it anyways.

　　"I love it, because I just feel it's fancier...to write, and it's fun to learn new letters," said Sophie Guardia, a 9-year-old in the fourth grade.

　　In teacher Nancy Karcher's class, her third-grade students said, "It's fun," "Now I can read my mom's writing," and "It's for my secrets."

　　Cursive coming back

　　As computers and smart devices grew in popularity², cursive writing was pushed aside. In 2010, the national Common Core education standards were published to help students prepare for university. Cursive was left out.

　　"They stopped teaching kids how to form any letters at all. Teacher colleges are not preparing teachers to teach handwriting," said Kathleen Wright. She is the founder³ of the Handwriting Collective, a nonprofit group.

　　But cursive is coming back. California became the 22nd U.S. state to require cursive handwriting and the 14th to pass a cursive teaching bill since 2014, said Lauren Gendill. She is a researcher at the National Conference of State Legislatures. Five states have introduced cursive bills so far in 2024.

　　Leslie Zoroya is project director for reading language arts at the Los Angeles County Office of Education. She said research has shown that learning cursive supports several linked skills that improve childhood development.

　　Zoroya said, "You're using different neural⁴ networks when you're doing cursive rather than printing. And so, it's creating those pathways in your brain."

　　Zoroya said she got the idea from former California Governor Jerry Brown.

　　California's teaching standards always had cursive writing goals, but Quirk-Silva said cursive was not always taught and was weakening.

　　She said, "The hope of the legislation⁵ is that by the time students leave sixth grade, they would be able to read and write it."

　　Words in This Story

　　cursive –n. a form of handwriting in which the writing instrument never leaves the paper while writing a word

　　grade –n. a level of education that is equal to one school year

　　complain – v. to say (something that expresses annoyance⁶ or unhappiness)

　　excited – adj. very enthusiastic and eager about something

　　library – n. a place where books, magazines, and other materials (such as videos and musical recordings) are available for people to use or borrow

　　fancy – adj. not plain or ordinary

　　standard – n. a level of quality, especially one that people think is acceptable⁷

　　neural – adj. of, relating to, or involving a nerve or the nervous system

1 historic   

adj.历史上著名的，具有历史意义的

参考例句：

• This is a historic occasion.这是具有重大历史意义的时刻。
• We are living in a great historic era.我们正处在一个伟大的历史时代。

2 popularity   

n.普及，流行，名望，受欢迎

参考例句：

• The story had an extensive popularity among American readers.这本小说在美国读者中赢得广泛的声望。
• Our product enjoys popularity throughout the world.我们的产品饮誉全球。

3 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

4 neural   

adj.神经的，神经系统的

参考例句：

• The neural network can preferably solve the non- linear problem.利用神经网络建模可以较好地解决非线性问题。
• The information transmission in neural system depends on neurotransmitters.信息传递的神经途径有赖于神经递质。

5 legislation   

n.立法，法律的制定；法规，法律

参考例句：

• They began to draft legislation.他们开始起草法规。
• The liberals band together against the new legislation.自由党员联合一致反对新的立法。

6 annoyance   

n.恼怒，生气，烦恼

参考例句：

• Why do you always take your annoyance out on me?为什么你不高兴时总是对我出气？
• I felt annoyance at being teased.我恼恨别人取笑我。

7 acceptable   

adj.可接受的，合意的，受欢迎的

参考例句：

• The terms of the contract are acceptable to us.我们认为这个合同的条件可以接受。
• Air pollution in the city had reached four times the acceptable levels.这座城市的空气污染程度曾高达可接受标准的四倍。