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Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class

nytimes.com

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Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class

#41

Post by lurk2 »

robcohen wrote: post #6

It just seems to me that the entire purpose of school is not clear. What precisely is the purpose of "English" class? What? To read and speak English? Ok, then why can't kids test out of it most of the time? Is the purpose to be knowledgeable about a canon of literature? Why can't people test against that? The truth is that pedagogy and instruction is just a lazy way of providing childcare. So who cares what they do…

> Why can't people test against that?

Most school districts do allow students to test out of classes and get placed at higher grade levels. The majority of people would never have tested above grade level. Your presence here means that you likely would have.

> The truth is that pedagogy and instruction is just a lazy way of providing childcare.

Providing every child with an education has been pedestrian in the developed world for less than a hundred years; it is far more expensive (and generally far more worthwhile) than mere childcare. The majority of people now living on earth never had the opportunities you and I had in school. This wasn’t because their caretakers didn’t love them, it’s because there was a dearth of resources available to educate them.

Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class

#42

Post by esafak »

gambiting wrote: post #22
thrwaway55 wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why would you write in cursive? If you care about WPM key board toasts it. If you care about handwritten your receiver cares they got your letter at all not that it's cursive or not. Cursive is an outdated skill for when it was the fastest way to get words written to paper.

>>Why would you write in cursive? I'm confused. How do you write if not in cursive? Do you just write in block capitals? With each letter on its own? Do you just not hand write anymore? >>Cursive is an outdated skill for when it was the fastest way to get words written to paper. But....It still is? Without using some kind of machine of course.

People write in cursive the same way a doctor writes a prescription.

Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class

#43

Post by Telaneo »

adfm wrote: post #8

I’ve noticed some of these kids can’t tell time on analog clocks nor read cursive handwriting.

I can read analogue clocks only because I was taught in school, and prefer digital ones for all use cases I have myself (other than maybe decorative?), and even when I do read an analogue clock face, I convert that to digital time in my head before I can properly parse it, so I have a hard time blaming them. There aren't many analogue clock faces I need to read in my life, and there are probably even less in theirs. The last time I strictly needed to be able to read one was, funnily enough, teaching kids how to read one.

Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class

#44

Post by gambiting »

Zak wrote: post #31
gambiting wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>>Why would you write in cursive? I'm confused. How do you write if not in cursive? Do you just write in block capitals? With each letter on its own? Do you just not hand write anymore? >>Cursive is an outdated skill for when it was the fastest way to get words written to paper. But....It still is? Without using some kind of machine of course.

Most people do not hand write anything more than a short note in 2025, and paper is not usually the target medium for longer texts. A desire to write without access to some sort of machine is a bit quaint. Of course to be pedantic, modern pens are machines too.

>>Most people do not hand write anything more than a short note in 2025

Is this like....a personal feeling? Or something with actual data behind it? But even if so - why does it matter? If you write short notes, do you not write them in cursive?

>>Of course to be pedantic, modern pens are machines too.

That's beyond pedantic, I struggle to imagine that anyone other than the a professional linguist would call a ball pen a machine.

Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class

#45

Post by [deleted] »

thrwaway55 wrote: post #19
lucyjojo wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

you don't write. people don't write in cursive around you?

Why would you write in cursive? If you care about WPM key board toasts it. If you care about handwritten your receiver cares they got your letter at all not that it's cursive or not. Cursive is an outdated skill for when it was the fastest way to get words written to paper.

[deleted]

Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class

#46

Post by cogman10 »

gambiting wrote: post #22
thrwaway55 wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why would you write in cursive? If you care about WPM key board toasts it. If you care about handwritten your receiver cares they got your letter at all not that it's cursive or not. Cursive is an outdated skill for when it was the fastest way to get words written to paper.

>>Why would you write in cursive? I'm confused. How do you write if not in cursive? Do you just write in block capitals? With each letter on its own? Do you just not hand write anymore? >>Cursive is an outdated skill for when it was the fastest way to get words written to paper. But....It still is? Without using some kind of machine of course.

> Do you just write in block capitals?

Block capitals? no. It's print. With upper and lowercase letters.

I rarely handwrite now. The last time I really did was in college.

> But....It still is? Without using some kind of machine of course.

But of course this is HN where most people are technical. We all have some sort of machine at our disposal otherwise we'd not be writing back and forth to one another.

Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class

#47

Post by gambiting »

esafak wrote: post #42
gambiting wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>>Why would you write in cursive? I'm confused. How do you write if not in cursive? Do you just write in block capitals? With each letter on its own? Do you just not hand write anymore? >>Cursive is an outdated skill for when it was the fastest way to get words written to paper. But....It still is? Without using some kind of machine of course.

People write in cursive the same way a doctor writes a prescription.

Not sure what that means. As in, badly? Dozens of times a day? The same things over and over again? And who are the "people"?

And again, that doesn't really answer my question - if you don't write in cursive, how do you write?

Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class

#48

Post by msteffen »

brightball wrote: post #21
adfm wrote: post #8

I’ve noticed some of these kids can’t tell time on analog clocks nor read cursive handwriting.

Analog clocks are interesting in that they exercise your brain when you read them. You have to do calculation (what is the number system for each hand), spatial reasoning (where is each hand) and categorization (what is each hand). There’s a program called Arrowsmith that has a summer program called the Cognitive Intensive Program. It’s basically 3-4 hours a day of speed reading analog clock for 7 weeks. You start ou…

This one? https://www.arrowsmith.ca/cip-arrowsmith-school

Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class

#49

Post by CGamesPlay »

brightball wrote: post #21
adfm wrote: post #8

I’ve noticed some of these kids can’t tell time on analog clocks nor read cursive handwriting.

Analog clocks are interesting in that they exercise your brain when you read them. You have to do calculation (what is the number system for each hand), spatial reasoning (where is each hand) and categorization (what is each hand). There’s a program called Arrowsmith that has a summer program called the Cognitive Intensive Program. It’s basically 3-4 hours a day of speed reading analog clock for 7 weeks. You start ou…

Hours, minutes, seconds, degrees, arcminutes, arcseconds... I could try to read 6, but honestly I doubt I'd even be able to see the arcseconds hand, it would be moving so quickly.

Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class

#50

Post by gambiting »

cogman10 wrote: post #46
gambiting wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>>Why would you write in cursive? I'm confused. How do you write if not in cursive? Do you just write in block capitals? With each letter on its own? Do you just not hand write anymore? >>Cursive is an outdated skill for when it was the fastest way to get words written to paper. But....It still is? Without using some kind of machine of course.

> Do you just write in block capitals? Block capitals? no. It's print. With upper and lowercase letters. I rarely handwrite now. The last time I really did was in college. > But....It still is? Without using some kind of machine of course. But of course this is HN where most people are technical. We all have some sort of machine at our disposal otherwise we'd not be writing back and forth to one another.

>>It's print. With upper and lowercase letters.

So like.......not linking the letters together then? Doesn't that just actually take more effort than just writing cursive? And is slower?

>>But of course this is HN where most people are technical.

For sure, and as a professional programmer I keep a notebook with hand written notes - the fact that I have a keyboard and multiple monitors in front of me doesn't change the fact that hand writing is still the best(for me) way to save and recall information.

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