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Committee hears bill encouraging cursive instruction in Montana schools
Summary
The Montana House Education Committee heard House Bill 445, sponsored by Rep. Zach Wirth, a measure encouraging schools to teach cursive writing. Supporters said cursive builds fine motor skills and helps students read historical documents; committee members asked how the change would fit into existing standards and classroom time.
HELENA — The Montana House Education Committee heard testimony on House Bill 445 on the teaching of cursive handwriting. Representative Zach Wirth, sponsor of the bill, opened the hearing and said the proposal would encourage public schools to include cursive instruction as part of handwriting instruction.
Supporters told the committee that teaching cursive can help students’ fine motor development and reading comprehension and enable them to read historical documents. Susie Hedalen, state superintendent at the Office of Public Instruction, said she supports the measure and encouraged integrating cursive into content standards now under revision. “House Bill 4 45 is a simple but powerful step towards strengthening our education system,” Hedalen said. She added that the Office of Public Instruction is asking the Board of Public Education’s negotiated rulemaking process to consider handwriting and cursive as the ELA standards are finalized.
Former classroom teacher Ms. Rainey, a proponent, described classroom benefits beyond penmanship: “When you teach writing, whether it be cursive or the elementary handwriting, you have a time of focus, directive teaching, and all parts of all learning styles are incorporated,” she said, arguing that deliberate handwriting time can support cognition and fine motor skills.
Committee members pressed for specifics about grade level and time. Hedalen said many Montana schools currently teach cursive and most commonly introduce it in third through fifth grade. She told the committee she envisions cursive being “incorporated during handwriting that’s already occurring,” rather than as a separate, stand‑alone course, and said the negotiated rulemaking committee will consider where it best fits in the English language arts standards.
Representatives on the committee raised practical concerns. Representative Strand and others asked whether the hands‑on time required for cursive would compete with priorities such as keyboarding and time spent preparing for online assessments. Representative Wirth said the bill is intended to “remind people how important this skill is” and to encourage districts to incorporate cursive where feasible.
The hearing record shows no formal action or vote on HB 445 during the session. Committee members did discuss that the Office of Public Instruction and the Board of Public Education could address the subject through the content standards process now underway.
The committee closed the hearing on House Bill 445 and moved to the next item on the agenda.
