Cursive Writing Required In Illinois Schools Under House Bill

SPRINGFIELD, IL — The Illinois House approved a bill Wednesday to require cursive writing be taught in elementary and high schools by a bipartisan 67-48 vote. The Illinois Board of Education has never required cursive as part of its learning standards in public schools, although more districts incorporated it voluntarily in the past. It was not included as required teaching under national common core standards adopted in 2010, which led to some districts dropping from their curricula.

The new bill, HB2977, was sponsored by Rep. Chris Welch (D-Hillside). He told Patch the only thing the bill mandated was that cursive writing be taught, and districts would be free to incorporate its teaching into their curriculum in any way they see fit. For instance, it could be incorporated into a lesson on the Declaration of Independence or the U.S. Constitution.

“If you teach it, then they can write it and they can read it," Welch said. He said cursive has been proven to improve comprehension and high-level thinking. "And if you get them early, you're going to have a successful student."

Welch said learning cursive has a wide variety of benefits many of which were outlined in a 2016 policy document from the American Handwriting Analysis Foundation that he said he shared with his House colleague during discussion of the bill. He also emphasized the value of learning cursive as a basic life skill.

"Teaching a person how to write their signature is an additional form of identity protection. It's almost like a fingerprint," Welch said. Plus, it helps with essay portions of standardized tests, like the bar exam. "There are just too many positives not to be teaching cursive."

Rep. Steven Andersson (R-Geneva) voted against the bill, arguing cursive is no better at developing the minds of students than is printing and legal documents don't require a signature, according to the AP.

Other Republicans, like Rep. Bob Pritchard (R-Hinckley) suggested local school districts should have discretion over whether they teach cursive writing, CBS reported.

Researchers and educators have suggested learning cursive writing supports deeper and more critical thinking. Because of the way cursive stimulates brain function, it is also commonly used as part of therapy for some learning disabilities such as dyslexia, according to PBS.

The Senate will now take up the bill, with Sen. Tom Cullerton (D-Villa Park) currently listed as a sponsor.