[NIFL-POVRACELIT:833] handwriting may have suddenly become more important for many students

From: Kate Gladstone (kate@global2000.net)
Date: Sun Jun 09 2002 - 17:47:04 EDT


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From: Kate Gladstone <kate@global2000.net>
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Subject: [NIFL-POVRACELIT:833] handwriting may have suddenly become more important for many students
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In case you haven't heard, starting in 2005 the SAT exam will include a *handwriting*
  component (in the form of a *handwritten* essay-test as half of a new 800-point 
Writing Section added to the current Verbal Section and Math Section).

              (To see more on this, read today's BOSTON GLOBE article at http:
//www.boston.com/dailynews/159/nation/Essay_expected_to_be_added_to_:.shtml 
-
             or look up the WALL STREET JOURNAL for Wednesday, June 5,
             that article starts on page B1.
Get both articles if possible, as each includes data that the other lacks 
-
and note that NEITHER article says anything about possibly letting students 
type their essays if they have handwriting-related disabilities).

Obviously, this poses difficulties for many students including particularly 
those with learning-disabilities that affect handwriting: the more so because 
often the curricula/IEPs of new literates have assumed that handwriting would 
never really matter much for them.
          Now, handwriting has suddenly become rather important for those whose 
dreams include college.

Co-incidentally ...

right before I learned of the forthcoming SAT revision, I'd just returned 
from serving on an IEP committee, dealing with some difficult people who were 
telling a mom that handwriting could never, ever matter for her 15-year-old 
college-bound newly-literate learning-disabled daughter or for anyone else 
living in our modern times -

this despite the fact that the young lady's school refuses to provide any 
non-handwriting accommodations for written work, and also refuses to teach 
handwriting-skills because they don't believe in this.
        (They *require* handwritten work, they just don't *teach* handwriting 
to anyone because they deem this "inappropriate.")

Since the daughter enters 10th grade in September, she will have to take the 
2005 SAT, handwriting and all - so you can bet that, as soon as I got home 
and learned about the 2005 SAT revision, I e-mailed the relevant info to her 
mom ... if you want to see/share that info, just ask and I'll e-mail the BOSTON 
GLOBE article.
               (I can't e-mail the lengthier WALL STREET JOURNAL article because
               I just don't have the time to type out that VERY long piece 
-
               for a copy of that article, check your local library.)

So ... depending on the needs/priorities/capabilities of your students,
if they will take the SAT during/after 2005 you *may* either

/a/ need to start asking NOW what (if anything) the College Board/SAT people 
intend to do with test-takers whose disabilities affect handwriting,

or /b/ need to start working on handwriting (just in case the College Board/
SAT people won't accept typed/orally delivered essays from anyone).


Yours for better letters,
Kate Gladstone - Handwriting Repair
kate@global2000.net
http://www.global2000.net/handwritingrepair
325 South Manning Boulevard
Albany, New York 12208-1731 USA
telephone 518/482-6763
     AND REMEMBER ...
you can order books through my site! (Amazon.com link - I
get a 5% - 15% commission on each book sold)



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