Ok, it’s probably a mixed blessing. Cursive writing has to have a function, right? But whatever the function — I can’t interpret my own cursive after about five minutes — it’s clear that when it comes to cursive, girls have always ruled.

This AP story in Edweek explores the issue:

As Cursive Wanes, Educators Wonder What Is Being Lost
A student practices both printing and cursive-handwriting skills in a classroom for children ages 6 to 9 at the Mountaineer Montessori School.
-Bob Bird/AP
Is time better spent on electronic communication?
By Tom Breen, Associated Press

Kelli Davis was in for a surprise when her daughter brought home some routine paperwork at the start of school this fall. The Charleston, W.Va., mother signed the form and then handed it to her daughter for the 8th grader’s signature.

“I just assumed she knew how to do it, but I have a piece of paper with her signature on it and it looks like a little kid’s signature,” Ms. Davis said. (more…)