MILWAUKEE — From texting to typing, many of us don't pick up a pen or pencil like we used to, and when we do chances are cursive won't be put to paper, except for maybe a signature.

That has some lawmakers worried, and now there's a renewed push to bring penmanship back to the classroom.

All five of Wisconsin's largest school districts, except for Milwaukee, already make teaching cursive a part of their curriculum, though some schools within MPS choose to do so anyway.

A bill making its way through the state Legislature again would make that requirement standard across the state.

What You Need To Know

  • The bill would require cursive writing to be taught in elementary grades to have students be able to write legibly in cursive by the end of fifth grade

  • A similar bill passed the state Assembly last session but was stalled in the Senate amid the COVID-19 pandemic, so the legislation has to work its way through the process again

  • An Assembly committee held a public hearing on this latest cursive bill Wednesday with the Senate doing the same Thursday

Before spending her days in the Capitol, State Sen. Joan Ballweg (R-Markesan) would spend them in the classroom.

“I didn't have the opportunity to teach it [cursive] myself, but I am definitely a big fan,” Ballweg said.

A former first-grade teacher, Ballweg said though some might think the penmanship style is outdated, learning how to do it has its benefits.

“The more reading a young person does, the better their comprehension, the better their vocabulary, and the more fluid they are able to be,” Ballweg said. “I think cursive writing does the same thing for people. There are studies that show that it does help develop those connections in the brain.”

The bill up for consideration would require cursive writing to be taught in elementary grades with the ultimate objective of having students be able to write legibly in cursive by the end of fifth grade.

Teaching cursive is already a part of the curriculum at the Madison Metropolitan School District.

“Cursive writing is already taught in second and third grades,” Tim LeMonds, a spokesperson for the district, said. “There are actually a lot of districts in the state who see value in teaching it.”

LeMonds said the district understands everyone wants the ability to sign their so-called 'John Handcock', but he doesn't see a need to mandate it.

“We feel, personally, that curriculum decisions are generally best made at the local level, you know by school leadership, locally elected school boards who have the intimate knowledge of local needs,” LeMonds said.

“I understand that, but there are a lot of outlines and directives that we give in the Legislature for curriculum that should be done,” Ballweg said. “We let the Department of Public Instruction set up those guidelines and parameters.”

A similar bill passed the state Assembly last session, but was stalled in the Senate amid the COVID-19 pandemic, so the legislation has to work its way through the process all over again.

An Assembly committee held a public hearing on this latest cursive bill Wednesday with the Senate doing the same Thursday.