Cursive and Print speeds, with poll (hopefully!)

[ElizabethB]

Here are the rules: Vote twice, once for your fastest method with your approximate time, then vote which is fastest for you.

 

You should write in both cursive and printing, writing every single letter of every single word, legibly but not crazy nice. Time how many seconds it takes for each.

 

Here are the 2 sentences to write, your time should be in seconds. If your time is 1 minute 45 seconds, that would be 60 + 45 seconds = 105 seconds. Take at least a 2 minute break in between tests to let your hand rest.

 

Fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

 

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation or any nation so conceived and so dedicated can long endure.

Edited October 26, 2011 by ElizabethB

[ElizabethB]

There is a cursive debate going on on the after schooling board, but don't go fight there, fight here with a few more facts, take the quick test before you join the debate!!

 

I learned cursive in 1st grade and was required to use cursive through 5th or 6th grade. In middle school or high school, I switched to taking my notes in print...I should have timed myself before the switch!

 

On the same passage, and I did cursive 2nd when my hand was a bit tired, I printed it in 104 seconds and wrote it in cursive in 84 seconds. I know the passage well, so knowing the text was not a difference.

 

While I am a fan of cursive in elementary and teaching cursive, I did not expect this result!!

 

I'm interested to see how this turns out for others, especially those well trained in cursive. I got some teaching, but not a lot, my parent's generation got a lot more cursive instruction...and, judging from some of the handwriting in my books from the late 1800's and early 1900's, my grandparents and great grandparents got even more intensive cursive instruction and practice.

[chepyl]

I learned cursive in 3rd or 4th grade. In 5th grade I was not allowed to print. I was yelled at and humiliated during a spelling game for printing my spelling word in the shaving cream. I started printing again in 6th grade and now I only sign my name.

 

I am teach DS cursive and will let him write how he wants. I write in a combined method, e a and h connect to the next letter in my writing. A few other letters connect.

 

Cursive time : 202 sec

Print time : 99 sec

 

I did cursiv first and my hand started to cramp.....I think my print time would have been faster I'd I did it first.

[Ellyndria]

I did print first, and cursive second when my hand was tired. My cursive was faster by 15 seconds.

 

I guess I'll also add that I officially learned cursive in second grade, however, I had done some cursive at home a couple years before that. From third to sixth grade, we were required to write in cursive for most things. Note taking in high school and college was done in either print or cursive, depending on my mood, however if I needed to take a lot of notes quickly I would switch to cursive. I currently probably print more than I write in cursive (I tend to make lists in print), but I revert to cursive if I have a lot to write as it saves time.

Edited October 26, 2011 by Ellyndria

[ElizabethB]

... I did cursive 2nd when my hand was a bit tired...

 

I did cursiv first and my hand started to cramp.....I think my print time would have been faster I'd I did it first.

 

I did print first, and cursive second when my hand was tired.

 

OK, I've now bolded my warning to wait at least 2 minutes between the 2 tests!!

 

I didn't follow my own instructions very well, either, but maybe if they're bolded it will work better. :lol::lol:

[Ellyndria]

OK, I've now bolded my warning to wait at least 2 minutes between the 2 tests!!

 

I didn't follow my own instructions very well, either, but maybe if they're bolded it will work better. :lol::lol:

 

 

Heh, bolding that is a good idea! I completely missed that part (obviously).

[obsidian]

My print was faster than my cursive and I did the print second. My normal handwriting, however, is a mix of both. Some print, some cursive, some more italic.

[KristinaBreece]

I can't believe that's still going on...

[ElizabethB]

I can't believe that's still going on...

 

The cursive debate? It's just getting going, it seems!!

 

I have been watching it for a few days, I decided to add this poll to either douse the flame or ramp up the fire, we'll see what happens, I'm thinking it could go either way...

[Farrar]

It took me nearly three and a half minutes to write that in cursive. Just over a minute in print. So I'd say it's faster.

 

ETA: Are there really people who can write that in 40 seconds? I guess if I already had it memorized (which I almost did, but I had to look up and recheck the wording as I went).

[ElizabethB]

ETA: Are there really people who can write that in 40 seconds? I guess if I already had it memorized (which I almost did, but I had to look up and recheck the wording as I went).

 

I was impressed, too! That's a great skill for college!!

[Jean in Newcastle]

I'm surprised that print was faster for me because cursive "feels easier". I still prefer cursive because it is smoother and neater. My print was only 10 seconds faster than my cursive, though so they were fairly close.

[ElizabethB]

I'm surprised that print was faster for me because cursive "feels easier". I still prefer cursive because it is smoother and neater. My print was only 10 seconds faster than my cursive, though so they were fairly close.

 

That's interesting, I was surprised in the opposite direction. Printing felt easier, I was surprised that my cursive time was 19 seconds faster. However, my cursive is much less legible than my print if I write it too quickly, that may be part of the reason I switched to printing for note taking. I can keep up with speech in either print or cursive if I write thought for thought, not word for word, eliminating unimportant words and writing "2" for "two," "w/" for "with," etc.

[twoxcell]

I did cursive first and it took 248 seconds.;) I'm very rusty on cursive.:lol: I did print right after with no break and it took me 106 seconds, so much faster for me. I'm sure this is because I only did cursive for a year or two and haven't practiced it in years other than to show my ds.

[ElizabethB]

I did cursive first and it took 248 seconds.;) I'm very rusty on cursive.:lol: I did print right after with no break and it took me 106 seconds, so much faster for me. I'm sure this is because I only did cursive for a year or two and haven't practiced it in years other than to show my ds.

 

I'm pretty rusty too, but I wrote cursive extensively during my formative years. I was surprised since the only cursive I write now is also to show my kids an occasional letter, connecting stroke, or word, I truly expected my cursive to be slower than my print.

 

This is all very interesting, I'm looking forward to seeing how the speeds look when more people take the test.

[Carpe]

I am very bad at cursive and am unfamiliar with those sentences, so my cursive time was embarrassing. My print time way 73s. I ordinarily write in semi-print with some letters connected. I find it hard not to connect those letters and really hard to connect the others. For giggles I just wrote it normally and it was 39s although it's questionable if anyone but me could read it.

[Ailaena]

I'm bumping this because I thought it was interesting :tongue_smilie:

[Tammyla]

Wow, I was surprised at the difference in how my hand felt. Cursive was faster (93 seconds) but, man oh man, printing made my hand and fingers ache & cramp (102 seconds.)~ I think cursive is easier and quicker for me, because I don't have to look at my hand and it just flows easier.

[ElizabethB]

I ordinarily write in semi-print with some letters connected. I find it hard not to connect those letters and really hard to connect the others. For giggles I just wrote it normally and it was 39s although it's questionable if anyone but me could read it.

 

Well, if you are taking notes, all that matters is that you can read it! :001_smile: 39 seconds is very impressive!!

 

I'm bumping this because I thought it was interesting :tongue_smilie:

 

It is interesting--even more interesting than I thought it would be.

 

Wow, I was surprised at the difference in how my hand felt. Cursive was faster (93 seconds) but, man oh man, printing made my hand and fingers ache & cramp (102 seconds.)~ I think cursive is easier and quicker for me, because I don't have to look at my hand and it just flows easier.

 

That is interesting, too!

[Sarah CB]

I just had a crazy experience with this on the weekend. I haven't written in cursive in about 20 years (at least) and, before this weekend, I would have told you that printing would be faster than cursive. Then I went to a conference where there was so much to write down that if I didn't write as fast as I could I would miss out. I found myself switching to cursive halfway during the first workshop and I never looked back. I had to write in cursive just to attempt to keep up with the speakers.

 

This was a huge surprise for me - and I have renewed my resolve to have my boys learn cursive well.

[JenneinCA]

I didn't vote because I can't remember how to form the letters in cursive. I stopped using cursive in seventh grade and have never gone back.

 

So I know that my print speed would be better.

[ElizabethB]

I just had a crazy experience with this on the weekend. I haven't written in cursive in about 20 years (at least) and, before this weekend, I would have told you that printing would be faster than cursive. Then I went to a conference where there was so much to write down that if I didn't write as fast as I could I would miss out. I found myself switching to cursive halfway during the first workshop and I never looked back. I had to write in cursive just to attempt to keep up with the speakers.

 

This was a huge surprise for me - and I have renewed my resolve to have my boys learn cursive well.

 

More than 20 years for me, but the same result! I guess it's like riding a bike if you learned it well.

 

It has renewed my resolve to work harder on cursive with my children as well.

[Tutor]

My normal handwriting is 90% print and 10% cursive. When I did the test, I printed it in 131 sec. I gave up on the cursive test about 20 seconds in because 1) I had only written 4 words and 2) those 4 words were illegible. :lol: In 5th grade, my parents signed me up for typing because my teacher could not read my handwriting and requested that I either type or print all of my assignments. Printing took a long time, so I learned to type. I am so glad that email and texting are so prevalent because otherwise I wouldn't be able to communicate clearly and in a timely fashion through print. :001_smile:

[amyable]

Cursive was faster than print for me. I think cursive would have won out anyway, but my print took forever because my normal "print" is like a print/cursive combo and I had to sit and think about how each letter "should" be written. I should time myself in my normal "pri-ursive"/"curs-int" and see how long it takes. (eta: it was a little shorter than my faster cursive time)

Edited October 26, 2011 by amyable

[Twilight Woods]

I think the results will vary depending on the writers preference and ability. I write mainly in cursive so My cursive time was better than my print.

[BatmansWife]

Cursive: 97 seconds

Print: 87 seconds

 

I don't know that I'd say either one is that legible (I have super sloppy handwriting if I'm rushed).

 

My 9th grader has a remedial reading class at the high school and is required to write in cursive. Until this class, he would print everything (extremely neatly) and is now having to relearn cursive. The teacher says that he draws his letters. So, he's slow in printing and cursive.

 

They just had a segment on the news last week about how many schools are thinking of dropping cursive. I've heard this for quite awhile...but it was the first time I saw the local news have a segment on it.

 

What exactly is the debate going on about cursive here?

[ElizabethB]

I am very bad at cursive and am unfamiliar with those sentences, so my cursive time was embarrassing.

 

Sorry, I guess I should have picked a few famous Shakespeare lines or something more international! I tried to pick something non-twaddly that many people would be familiar enough with to write out quickly.

[ElizabethB]

What exactly is the debate going on about cursive here?

 

It is going on over at the afterschooling board, but don't go gang up on the afterschoolers, you can debate it here instead!!

 

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=318945

[Farrar]

It's just going to stay neck and neck, isn't it?

[BatmansWife]

It is going on over at the afterschooling board, but don't go gang up on the afterschoolers, you can debate it here instead!!

 

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=318945

 

Thanks for explaining. Nah....I don't need to debate it. :D My oldest did HWT cursive books and loved them....she always wanted more but there were only 2. She has her own style (not at all like HWT)....kind of a combo of cursive and print (like I do). Ds does cursive for his class at school but still rarely writes in cursive outside of that class. I'm fine with it...whatever he feels better at doing (he has a hard enough time spelling and writing...why add to the stress?).....but I am having him try to remember to write his name in cursive (so he won't sign a form sometime and end up printing). Little dd is just starting NAC and loves it. She is so excited to be learning cursive.

To each his own, I guess. :001_smile:

[ElizabethB]

It's just going to stay neck and neck, isn't it?

 

Well, the preferences are neck in neck, but so far the cursive times are faster than the print times, here is an approximation of the numbers so far if you assume the middle speed for each category and use 40 seconds for 40 seconds or less:

 

approximate average cursive time: 78

 

approximate average print time: 96

[Daisy]

I never print but was surprised by the results.

 

Cursive took me 100 seconds. I have very traditional cursive.

 

Print took me 50 seconds but looks terrible. I can barely print. I wanted to keep going into cursive. And my hand is now killing me. :lol:

 

I don't really care about speed though. I'm more concerned with how it looks and how my hand feels.

[boscopup]

My print was 108 sec, cursive was 135 sec (with a child bothering me during that one, but I don't think that affected the time). The cursive FELT better to my hand for sure. I also was sometimes mixing in some italic cursive into the print, most likely.

 

I used print up until 2nd grade when we learned cursive. Then we were forced to use cursive until I think 7th grade. In 7th, the teacher said we could use whatever we wanted. I switched to print, all caps, purple pen. :D In high school, I put the lowercase letters back in. :tongue_smilie: I didn't write cursive again until the GRE (to get into grad school) when I had to write one of those paragraphs saying I wouldn't cheat, and they said it had to be in cursive. Hardest part of the test for me! I couldn't remember how to make a capital 'I'. :001_huh:

 

This summer, I started learning cursive italic, and used that for much of my writing. Recently, I've relearned traditional cursive and try to use it for most of my writing. My brain is still making the switch.

 

I'll bet my cursive will be faster when I've used it for a longer time. I'm just still "rusty" compared to print, that I've been using exclusively for the last almost 25 years. Of course I'll print faster than the cursive I've been using for just a few months. :)

 

Print makes my hand hurt quickly, for sure. I prefer cursive now that I'm getting better at it. As far as legibility goes, they're both legible, but not pretty. I think my cursive is starting to look prettier. In cursive, the word "dedicated" ended up looking like "dedicitied". My brain was apparently confused there. :lol:

[chicagoshannon]

My cursive was a minute faster then my print. Although I can't remember how to make an F in cursive. lol

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

Print was a few seconds faster and looks neater- 120 seconds to print

 

Cursive was 125 seconds and looks less legible. But I've always had bad handwriting.

[nukeswife]

I learned cursive in 3rd grade and it was required until 6th grade. I usually have a printed hand with a few italic join ups in there. My times were as follows, but I was having to look at the screen quite a bit because I never had to memorize the passage.

Maybe something like the old typing practice phrase "The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog" would have been a better test since I have that one memorized :tongue_smilie:

 

Print: 115 sec

Cursive: 125 sec

 

My hand really started to cramp up with the cursive and the legibility went down hill pretty fast by the second sentence.

[ElizabethB]

Maybe something like the old typing practice phrase "The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog" would have been a better test since I have that one memorized :tongue_smilie:

 

I thought about that one--there are a few problems with it that led me to throw it out:

 

1. It's kind of twaddle--useful twaddle, everyone should know it, but still twaddly.

 

2. To make it long enough that a few seconds error writing down your time wouldn't influence the results and to make it long enough for some hand cramping to come into play, I would have had to make everyone write it 5 times on the blackboard and that's too much like punishment to be a good test!!

[Carpe]

Sorry, I guess I should have picked a few famous Shakespeare lines or something more international! I tried to pick something non-twaddly that many people would be familiar enough with to write out quickly.

 

It's okay, by the third time through it wasn't an issue. :lol:

[JudoMom]

Print was 93 seconds and cursive 102 seconds.

[Grover]

Print took me exactly 80 seconds, cursive (italic - I've never learnt the other kind) 48 seconds. I'm not familiar with the quote apart from the first few words, thanks to Kindergarten Cop. In day to day use I print, but for essays / exams and the like I link.

[ElizabethB]

With 16 more people registering their speeds, the averages are staying pretty stable.

 

Here is an approximation of the new numbers so far if you assume the middle speed for each category and use 40 seconds for 40 seconds or less:

 

approximate average cursive time: 79 seconds

 

approximate average print time: 95 seconds

[kitten18]

It is going on over at the afterschooling board, but don't go gang up on the afterschoolers, you can debate it here instead!!

 

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=318945

That was so strange. I have never seen posts just *poof*, and they are gone.:001_huh:

 

 

 

As for the OP - my printing was 23 seconds faster.

[Critterfixer]

Print time 103.95

Cursive time 124.55

I used pencil, which is my typical writing instrument of choice. As an interesting aside, I found that when I printed the words, I found myself focusing on one word at a time. With cursive, I seemed to be thinking more in phrases.

 

I actually did it twice each, because I fumble-fingered on the switch for the stop-watch. I was faster both times the second time around. I guess I needed warm-up! I also found that I was less fatigued with the cursive style. I used to use it for everything, but I use print for writing at work, and for the boys narrations. So I guess I'm getting better at printing.

[Haiku]

As I have always said, print was faster for me. 88 seconds vs. 113 seconds.

 

Hubby just did it, too. Cursive was faster for him by 8 seconds, but he said that his cursive is far less legible than his printing.

 

Tara

[regentrude]

Cursive: 75 seconds.

Print: 105 seconds. And I had the hardest time to keep printing, because I automatically want to link the letters and write cursive when I am writing fast.

[myfatherslily]

My time was 109 seconds for cursive and 100 seconds for print. I enjoy writing both ways and switch regularly. :)