ABSTRACT

This fascinating and wide-ranging book charts developments in the teaching and study of handwriting over the course of the twentieth century.
The book shows how changing educational policies, economic forces and inevitable technological advance have combined to alter the priorities and form of handwriting. This 'long and sometimes sorry story' tells also of the sheer pain and hard work of children forced to follow the style of the day, and of the reformers who have sought to simplify the teaching and learning of handwriting over the years. Illustrated throughout with examples from copybooks and personal handwriting from across the world, the book is a compelling historical record of techniques, styles and methods.

chapter |2 pages

Introduction

chapter Chapter 1|16 pages

The influences on contemporary handwriting

A historical perspective

chapter Chapter 2|10 pages

The turn of the century

chapter Chapter 3|20 pages

Learning from copy books

chapter Chapter 4|14 pages

Simplifying letterforms

chapter Chapter 5|22 pages

Initiatives and models from 1930

chapter Chapter 6|14 pages

Educational attitudes mid-century

chapter Chapter 7|16 pages

Stylistic issues after 1950

chapter Chapter 8|12 pages

Initiatives in the 1960s

chapter Chapter 9|12 pages

From 1970 to the National Curriculum

chapter Chapter 10|14 pages

The end of the century

chapter Chapter 11|22 pages

Handwriting around Europe

chapter Chapter 12|17 pages

America and Australia