BOISE, Idaho — A new bill proposed in the Idaho Senate aims to require all Idaho students to be proficient at reading and writing in cursive by the end of 5th grade. Cursive is already taught in Idaho schools.
Senate Bill 1044 would declare an emergency and require Idaho schools to comply with new guidelines and assessments for cursive writing by the start of the 2025-2026 school year.
RELATED: School choice - Idaho educators rally against school vouchers at Statehouse
Senator Tammy Nichols (R) sponsored the bill and says cursive writing has many benefits for students.
"It's not just about handwriting, there's so much more involved. Cursive handwriting has shown that it helps kids with reading, it helps them in memorization, in spelling, in language learning and in abstract and complex thought processes," says Nichols.
Senator Kevin Cook (R) held a different opinion during Wednesday's meeting, arguing that cursive is something that could be left to the past and shouldn’t be mandatory.
"So we're moving to a different century where Latin is not required, cursive is not required," says Cook.
The Bill moved forward from the Education Committee and is now headed to the Senate floor.
Idaho News 6 spoke with people on Eighth Street in Downtown Boise about their thoughts on cursive and this piece of legislation.
