Anne Trubek, author of "The History and Uncertain Future of Handwriting," said schools should not require cursive mastery any more than they should require all children to play a musical instrument.

Cursive handwriting plays a part in developing them. Yoder said it helps stimulate the brain in a variety of ways that can have long-lasting implications in a way that typing does not.

Many younger teachers aren't prepared to teach cursive or manuscript, said Kathleen S. Wright, national handwriting product manager for Zaner-Bloser Publishing, which develops instructional tools.

Adults increasingly abandon cursive. In 2012, handwriting teachers were surveyed at a conference hosted by Zaner-Bloser, a publisher of cursive textbooks.

But cursive instruction was in decline long before 2010, when most states adopted the Common Core curriculum standards, which say nothing about handwriting.

People often credit my good handwriting to my Catholic school education—like a nun with a ruler and a taste for corporal ...

Mary Altaffer-Associated Press A third-grader practices his cursive handwriting at P.S. 166 in the Queens borough of New York. Cursive writing is looping back into style in schools.

According to School District 51 Public Information Officer Christy McGee, handwriting (printing and some cursive) is still part of student curriculum across the state. However, it’s not necessarily ...

In 2012, handwriting teachers were surveyed at a conference hosted by Zaner-Bloser, a publisher of cursive textbooks. Only 37 percent wrote in cursive; another 8 percent printed.

But cursive instruction was in decline long before 2010, when most states adopted the Common Core curriculum standards, which say nothing about handwriting.