New Jersey public school students in the third, fourth and fifth grades will be taught cursive writing.
That proposal was signed into law by Gov. Phil Murphy Monday on his last full day as the Garden State’s governor, according to NJ.com.
Beginning in the fall, students will be be required to read and write cursive proficiently. Murphy called bill S1783/A3865 “especially meaningful as New Jersey celebrates the upcoming 250th anniversary of our country’s founding,” which is significantly documented in that form of print.
The governor also cited cognitive benefits for the curriculum change.
Teaching cursive reportedly became optional in New Jersey schools about 15 years ago. Some schools found that high schoolers didn’t have signatures due to their inability to form cursive letters, according to NJ.com. Supporters of the new bill contended that lower-income students were less likely to learn cursive.
Teaching cursive in New York State became optional round the same time New Jersey administrators left the decision to local educators.
Middletown paper the Times Herald-Record reported in September 2023 that New York was one of 29 states that didn’t require public schools to teach cursive writing. New York State Senate bill S7743, which was proposed in May, could change that if it’s signed into law. It too would require students to “create readable documents through legible cursive handwriting by the end of the fifth grade.”
