Cursive Writing

First, cursive writing is not putting rap lyrics on paper. It's what we used to call "script" writing, as opposed to "printing", which now apparently is called block lettering. As the kids say...whatever.

Two blogs I read with some regularity both commented on a study that cursive writing is disappearing from the American landscape (A Constrained Vision and The Education Wonks). I left similar comments on both posts:

I'm 48, so that kind of tells you when I was in school. I remember cursive lessons, true--but I also remember having to add, subtract and multiply with roman numerals!

Education sloughs off non-essential skills over time. Teaching cursive in this day and age is about as helpful as learning how to use a slide rule, another skill I was asked to master.

There is also the exam time constraints-- I know that I could never have completed my tests in the 44 minute periods we had if I had to slow down enough to make my cursive legible.

As with many failings of the education system, both real and perceived, the main fault lies in not enough instructional hours in the school day, not enough school days in the year for our kids to learn all they truly need to know. Other societies may still stress cursive, or some other antiquating skill--but do their kids go to school for 6 hours, 180 days?

Personally, given current realities, I would put cursive writing far down the list of items to be learned.

Hey W! Here's Some Volunteers For Ya!

I love sports as much as the next guy. And I coached youth teams for years-- not only my daughters' teams, but also teams before my daughters were even born. And I played my share of team sports. I know how intense people can get about sports in general, and their kids in particular.

Still, this story astounds me:

Father Pulls Gun on Football Coach Over Son's Playing Time

PHILADELPHIA A father pulled a gun on a youth football coach because his son wasn't getting enough playing time, police said.
Wayne Derkotch, 40, was arguing with the coach Sunday morning during a game of 6- and 7-year-olds in northeast Philadelphia when he pulled out the gun, police said.
No shots were fired and no one required medical treatment, authorities said.
Derkotch was charged with aggravated assault, simple assault and reckless endangerment. He did not immediately return a telephone message left at his home Monday.
A referee who allegedly threw a punch at a man was also arrested on assault charges, but it was not clear if that fight was related to the first altercation, police spokeswoman Lisa Rotolo said.

This comes on the heels of the Miami football game and the, wait for it---Dartmouth-Holy Cross football game--where in two separate games on the same day "student athletes" acted like common thugs.

C'mon, now. We have kids climbing in and out of caves in Afghanistan and being attacked daily in Baghdad, and these morons are treating football games like they were meaningful in any way.

I'm the judge for these idiots? I give them all the choice of 20 years in prison or a tour in Iraq, take your pick.

Perspective. Simple perspective.

Tokes For The Memory

OK, I admit I am confused.

For years we've been told that regular marijuana use destroys one's memory. The absent-minded stoner has replaced the absent-minded professor in modern movies and television. Think "this is your brain on drugs", Cheech and Chong, etc. etc.

Now a new study says that the key chemical in marijuana can help prevent Alzheimers.

Maybe next they'll find that McDonald's fries helps prevent coronary disease.