Fixing Delaware’s Cursive Law to Boost Early Literacy

Edited by the Caesar Rodney Institute

Delaware’s reading results remain low. In the 2024 to 2025 school year, about 42% of students were proficient in English language arts on Delaware’s state assessment, according to the Delaware Department of Education’s (DDOE) Report Card. On the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), a national benchmark, 26% of Delaware grade 4 students and 23% of grade 8 students scored at or above NAEP Proficient in reading.

The Delaware Report Card and NAEP are different tests, but both point to the same challenge.

One low-cost, research-backed step already sits in Delaware law: cursive handwriting

instruction. Delaware requires cursive by the end of grade 4, but the law does not require schools to report instructional time or whether students reach basic competency. That makes

implementation difficult to measure and uneven across classrooms.

Delaware should strengthen this existing requirement by setting clearer expectations for

instruction and practice, adding a simple annual reporting check through existing DDOE’s tools, and launching a 2027 to 2028 pilot in 20 schools. The pilot should track results using Delaware’s state assessment outcomes and NAEP-aligned reading and writing measures.

Why Handwriting, Including Cursive, Matters for Literacy

Cursive is not a stand-alone reading program, and it is not a replacement for “the science of

reading” instruction. The case for handwriting is that it supports literacy foundations that sit

underneath both reading and writing: letter recognition, spelling patterns, writing fluency and the reading-writing connection.

Research helps explain the mechanism. A 2012 study by Karin Harman James and Laura Engelhardt found that after children practiced letters by handwriting, a “reading circuit” in the brain was recruited during letter perception in ways that were not seen after typing or tracing. A 2020 study by Eva Ose Askvik and colleagues similarly reported differences in brain activity during handwriting compared with typewriting, with implications for learning and memory.

Evidence also supports the classroom side of the argument. A 2016 meta-analysis by Tanya Santangelo and Steve Graham found that explicit handwriting instruction improves handwriting quality and fluency and is associated with better writing outcomes. A 2022 study in Reading and Writing by Gustaf Skar and colleagues found handwriting fluency was associated with stronger writing quality in primary grades.

This matters for reading, too, because reading and writing develop together. A meta‑analysis of writing instruction and reading outcomes found that writing instruction can improve reading outcomes for students with literacy difficulties, as summarized in Steve Graham’s overview, “Want to Improve Children’s Writing? Don’t Neglect Their Handwriting.”

Delaware Law Exists, But it Needs Stronger Implementation

Delaware already recognizes the value of cursive instruction. State law requires every public elementary school to teach cursive writing by the end of grade 4 as a component of English language arts, beginning with the 2017–2018 school year (Title 14 §4138, House Bill 70).

That was an important first step. The challenge is that the requirement is thin on implementation. The law does not set a minimum amount of instructional time, does not establish expectations for continued practice beyond grade 4, and does not require routine reporting that would allow families and policymakers to see whether instruction is being delivered consistently across schools.

As a result, cursive instruction can vary widely from classroom to classroom. Some schools build fluency through repeated practice. Others treat cursive as a short unit, leaving many students without lasting competency. If Delaware wants this policy to function as a meaningful support for literacy and writing development, the state needs clearer expectations and a simple way to measure follow-through.

Delaware is not alone. A recent policy update from the National Association of State Boards of Education reports that roughly two dozen states now require some form of cursive instruction in public schools, reflecting renewed interest in handwriting as a foundational skill. Many of these policies specify the grades in which cursive must be taught and expect students to be able to read and write in cursive by certain points in elementary school, showing that implementation can be strengthened without adding a new statewide test.

Recommendation: Strengthen and Support Delaware’s Cursive Requirement

If Delaware wants stronger results from an existing requirement, the next steps should focus on implementation and measurement.

Adding targeted requirements to strengthen implementation would further support Delaware students. Education researcher Steve Graham has recommended allocating 50 to 100 minutes per week to handwriting instruction in the early grades, delivered in short sessions several times a week or even daily.

In practical terms, that can be structured as brief daily lessons, for example, 10 to 15 minutes a day, during grades 2 through 4. In higher grades, cursive should be reinforced through regular writing assignments so students maintain fluency.

Delaware-specific steps should focus on closing the implementation gap by:

1. Set clear expectations for instruction in grades 2 through 4 (for example, 75 to 100

   minutes per week in short daily lessons).

2. Expect regular cursive practice in grades 5 through 8, including in writing

   assignments, with appropriate accommodations.

3. Add a simple annual compliance check through existing Delaware Department of

   Education reporting tools to confirm that cursive instruction is being delivered

   consistently.

4. Provide modest, targeted funding and professional learning so teachers are prepared to teach cursive effectively and consistently.

5. Launch a 2027 to 2028 pilot in 20 schools, designed to evaluate outcomes using

   Delaware’s state assessment outcomes and NAEP-aligned reading and writing measures.

Looking Forward

Parents reasonably expect schools to teach basic skills like reading, writing and signature‑level penmanship, not just screen navigation. Delaware has an opportunity to turn an existing, low‑cost policy into a higher‑impact literacy support.

Unlike many education reforms, strengthening cursive requires minutes and materials, not a new bureaucracy. Strengthening cursive instruction is not about going backward; it is about ensuring students build a practical skill that supports reading and writing development and making sure the state can measure whether the law is being carried out.