Unexpectedly having to write in cursive/handwriting thread

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Atomsk
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21 Feb 2012, 11:55 pm

So today I took the Praxis I test, which is just a test you need to pass up here in order to get into the Master's program to which I am applying.

I get there, they hand me this confidentiality agreement to sign... except they don't just want my signature...

They wanted me to copy this paragraph in cursive, which I have not written with in English in over 12 years. It was harder for me to copy that paragraph than to do the entire 4.5 hour test, which I finished in under 2. I literally blew through the first section of the test, and then some, in the time it took me to copy that damn paragraph. And good f****** luck to anyone who has to read it.

It was nuts - I took literally half an hour to write this paragraph - and I had not the slightest clue I would have to do something like that.

Anyone had similar experiences with needing to use handwriting unexpectedly? Or just handwriting stuff in general you want to say/complain about, etc.



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22 Feb 2012, 12:05 am

I got pulled in the office with the main bosses for a week filling out new hire paperwork. I hadn't done clerical work in like 6 years....

Then, out of the blue I'm correcting spelling - filling out forms, photocopying. Working on my handwriting to make it legible because I hadn't used it in so long. Leaving notes, filing.... Arg...

I was having a tough time until I realized basically no one in the office could spell. My own boss from the field wrote the secretary a note. "Rudy dose not work here anymore."... Ha... I can't believe that, dose instead of does? ... Psst...

I was a superhero that week.



sfreyj
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22 Feb 2012, 2:46 am

I've seen something like that before. It said 'Do not print', which basically means you should write in your normal handwriting. I think it was for identity verification rather than your ability to write in cursive. It verifies that the person who wrote the paragraph was also the person who completed the test. Did it mention 'cursive' specifically? If so, that is very odd.

Since I write in cursive, I find I have to unexpectedly 'print', since most people these days have lost the ability to read cursive.



Last edited by sfreyj on 22 Feb 2012, 3:52 am, edited 1 time in total.

Jtuk
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22 Feb 2012, 2:48 am

Wow, that sounds kinda tough and I would have had the same problem, I know some employers like to pull a please send a written application letter, but I see that less now with online applications.

My handwriting is atrocious, I remember in primary school starting each new exercise book with the best intentions, but they usually ran out after half a page. This did actually get me into some special education classes, but these only lasted a couple of sessions. Nothing ever did improve my handwriting and it's a battle that the school and my parents gave up when I bought a printer.

The only time I get close to writing in public is on a flip hart, I am reasonably legible but try and avoid it. On the other hand my typing, writing and editing skills are top notch, so I am often called on to write polices or act as scribe in meetings (I can type as fast as any old school secretary)

I have toyed with the idea of learning shorthand and have gone through a calligraphy phrase which I was pretty good at.

Jason



pat2rome
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22 Feb 2012, 3:38 am

Atomsk wrote:
So today I took the Praxis I test, which is just a test you need to pass up here in order to get into the Master's program to which I am applying.

I get there, they hand me this confidentiality agreement to sign... except they don't just want my signature...

They wanted me to copy this paragraph in cursive, which I have not written with in English in over 12 years. It was harder for me to copy that paragraph than to do the entire 4.5 hour test, which I finished in under 2. I literally blew through the first section of the test, and then some, in the time it took me to copy that damn paragraph. And good f****** luck to anyone who has to read it.

It was nuts - I took literally half an hour to write this paragraph - and I had not the slightest clue I would have to do something like that.

Anyone had similar experiences with needing to use handwriting unexpectedly? Or just handwriting stuff in general you want to say/complain about, etc.

The SAT and GRE both have that paragraph too. I took the SAT several times, and other than the first two I just wrote it out normally. I ran out of room those two times, and I figured if only writing most of the paragraph in cursive was okay, then writing all of it normally would be too. Fortunately I was right.

I feel like I just "invent" the way I write a couple of cursive letters that I can't remember; other than that paragraph the only time I've been asked to do cursive is a signature.

Also, I doubt I'm the only one (actually a small pet peeve when people start out a question with "am I the only one who..." There are 7+ billion people. No, you are not the only one), but who else can't write it all in one continuous motion? I have to stop writing every few letters or so, pick up my hand, and move it. I can't move it and write at the same time.


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Stargazer43
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22 Feb 2012, 4:06 am

LOL, when I took the GRE I had to do the same thing! I honestly couldn't even remember how to write a couple letters in cursive, so I just kind of scribbled something for them. I looked at it when I was done and I could hardly read a single word I wrote lol. I've used print ever since the 2nd grade for a reason, and a good one at that I might add :D. I even printed my signature for a while until someone told me that it could be a security risk.



hanyo
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22 Feb 2012, 4:10 am

Since leaving school at 16 I haven't used any cursive except to sign my own name. I'm not even sure if I remember how to write cursive.

I don't like trying to read other people's cursive. I sometimes even have trouble reading other people's regular handwriting.



OddDuckNash99
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22 Feb 2012, 8:31 am

I personally find it a travesty that cursive has fallen to the wayside. Why learn it at all in school if we aren't going to use it for anything besides our signature? I write in cursive whenever possible. I enjoy the uniqueness of my handwriting when in cursive, and cursive is so much easier for me. Printing makes you have to make hard strokes for each letter. My motor skills have never been all that great. Printing always feels like an effort and like I'm struggling to get through the word. Cursive on the other hand is all fluid motions that are connected, and I have such an easier time making strokes and writing faster when I write in cursive. It's the closest handwriting type to typing on a computer, which I also love for the rapidity and fluidness.


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izzeme
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22 Feb 2012, 10:32 am

writing in cursive... if i write anything by hand; a'm happy if i'm able to read my own notes a day later.
i can write something in a way that other people can read it; but it will indeed take me three or four times as long as 'normal' writing, dont ask me to use any perticular script or style; be happy you can read ;)



Atomsk
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22 Feb 2012, 11:11 am

OddDuckNash99 wrote:
I personally find it a travesty that cursive has fallen to the wayside. Why learn it at all in school if we aren't going to use it for anything besides our signature? I write in cursive whenever possible. I enjoy the uniqueness of my handwriting when in cursive, and cursive is so much easier for me. Printing makes you have to make hard strokes for each letter. My motor skills have never been all that great. Printing always feels like an effort and like I'm struggling to get through the word. Cursive on the other hand is all fluid motions that are connected, and I have such an easier time making strokes and writing faster when I write in cursive. It's the closest handwriting type to typing on a computer, which I also love for the rapidity and fluidness.


Well, in other languages, cursive is still going strong. Take Russian, for example - they still use cursive over print. It has been the most difficult part of learning Russian for me, but I'm starting to get the hang of it. I'm still not fast, but we don't need to do much writing yet, on tests, so even with my slow writing it is ok.

I definitely understand where you're coming from though, and I agree, it's sad to see cursive falling to the wayside, but for me personally, it is difficult to use. NT's with the ability to write in it legibly don't have much of an excuse, though, but I personally don't care how someone does their handwriting, as long as I can read it.