LOUISVILLE, Ky. — An old form of education may be returning to Kentucky classrooms.

Senate Bill 167 would require cursive writing be taught in elementary schools. The bill would also require students to sign their name to graduate high school 

The speed it takes to write in cursive, calligraphy or print is very different. A Louisville calligrapher said writing in script is faster.

"I literally used it to survive college lectures because the speed was how fast you can write in print," said Bethany Meacham of Hand Lettery by Bethany. "You cannot write nearly as fast as you can in cursive because all the letters are connected." 

Hand lettering and calligraphy are based on cursive. It’s an art form Meacham said is therapeutic.

"I really enjoy doing calligraphy because it's a great creative outlet for me, and it doesn't take up a lot of money or a lot of space or time, really," she said. "You can do it for like 10 or 15 minutes, and all you need are some good brush pens and a nice smooth paper, and that's really it." 

For the last seven years, she has taught people of all ages hand lettering in person and online. She said some of her younger students need more guidance.

"Especially with Gen Z, a lot of them [never] being taught cursive, there's a little more of a learning curve for them because it is loosely based on cursive," she said. 

Like writing, it can also be hard for some to read. On her TikTok account that has more than 26,000 followers, Meacham said sometimes people think she misspelled a word, but they just can't read cursive. 

Meacham said it's likely those who can't write in cursive can't sign their own name. 

"It feels like a life skill that you should ... have," she said.

Should SB 167 pass, it would affect course curriculums for the 2025-26 academic year. It would require third-graders to take a cursive class, and high schools would have to offer cursive and typing courses.