The world of writing is changing.
Things have moved very quickly away from keyboards and predictive text. The rise of generative artificial intelligence (AI) means that robots can now write human-quality text without having hands.
Recent improvements in text-to-speech software mean that even human writers don’t need to touch a keyboard, let alone a pen. And with the help of artificial intelligence, text can also be generated by decoders that read brain activity through non-invasive scanning.
The writers of the future will be talkers and thinkers, without having to lift a finger. The word writer can come to mean something very different, as people compose text in multiple ways in an increasingly digital world. So humans have yet to learn to write by hand?
Handwriting is still part of the curriculum
The pandemic has moved much of education online, and some important tests, like NAPLAN, are now running on computers. There are also calls to phase out cursive handwriting in high school.
However, learning to handwrite is still a key component of the primary school literacy curriculum.
Parents may wonder if the long and challenging process of learning handwriting is worth it. Maybe the effort spent learning how to form letters would be better spent on coding?
Many students with disabilities, after all, are already learning to write with assistive technologies.
But there are a number of important reasons why handwriting will still be and still needs to be taught in schools.
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1. Fine motor skills
Handwriting develops critical fine motor skills and the coordination needed to control precise movements. These movements are necessary for carrying out daily school and work activities.
The refinement of these motor skills also leads to increasingly legible and flowing writing.
We don’t know where technology will take us, but it could take us back in time.
Handwriting could be more important than ever if tests and exams go back to being handwritten to prevent students from using generative AI to cheat.
Read more: Why cursive writing needs to go back to school
2. It helps you remember
Handwriting has important cognitive benefits, including for memory.
Research suggests that traditional pen and paper notes are better remembered, due to the increased complexity of the handwriting process.
And learning to read and handwrite are intimately linked. Students become better readers by practicing writing.
3. It’s good for well-being
Handwriting and related activities such as drawing are tactile, creative and reflective sources of pleasure and well-being for writers of all ages.
This is seen in the popularity of practices such as print journalism and calligraphy. There are many online communities where writers share great handwriting examples.
Samir Bouaked/Unsplash
4. It’s very accessible
Handwriting doesn’t need electricity, devices, batteries, software, subscriptions, a fast internet connection, a keyboard, charging time, or the many other things digital writing depends on.
He just needs a pen and paper. And it can be done anywhere.
Sometimes handwriting is the easiest and best option. For example, when writing a birthday card, filling out printed forms, or writing a short note.
Read more: How important is handwriting?
5. It’s about thinking
Marcos Paulo Prado/Unsplash
More importantly, learning to write and learning to think are intimately connected.
Ideas are formed as students write. They are developed and organized as they are composed. Thought is too important to be entrusted to robots!
Teaching writing is all about giving students a toolkit of multiple writing strategies to enable them to realize their potential as thoughtful, creative, and capable communicators.
Handwriting will remain an important component of this toolkit for the foreseeable future, despite the amazing progress made with generative AI.
Writing perfect cursive may become less important in the future. But students will still need to be able to write legibly and fluently in their education and in their larger lives.
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