I am looking a resource or a system that will teach our son a solid cursive handwriting.  It seems that most experts are pushing cursive italic as the best way to improve one’s handwriting. Italic certainly has an advantage in legibility but I have hard time believing it can compete in speed with old fashioned looped cursive handwriting.  I wonder if anyone knows of an affordable resource that teaches the more traditional ‘looped’ lettering methods. I am not looking for any fancy calligraphy,  just  a simple lettering system that flows better than italic does.

It seems to me that general deterioration in handwriting skills in modern society is an integral part of the general dumbing down of our population by mandatory schooling.  The modern educational philosophy appears to be rooted in beliefs that our children are either inherently incapable of mastering certain skills, or such skills are just not worth learning.  Perhaps we don’t need to go back to years of penmanship but we can certainly do better than we are.  People with elementary level education used to write eloquently in a beautiful handwriting.  Typewriters and word processors have added value but in the bargain we have, in aggregate, become dumber, less eloquent and incapable of legible handwriting. What a bargain!