Commentary
Do you normally write by hand or type? Did you find this task difficult or easy? Explain.
When I have to write an essay, I normally type, but when I give comments on students’ work or when I tutor, I write by hand. This task was not difficult for me because I am used to writing and I like it. I have always been told that my penmanship is amazing which has kept me writing.
What did you do when you made a mistake or wanted to change your writing? How did you edit your work? Did your choice of media play a part in how you edited your work?
When I made a mistake or wanted to change my writing, I just erased it because I used an erasable pen. I actually had to do a draft prior to writing my good copy which took up some time. When I type out my work, I rarely do a draft because I can just edit my work in real time. I was extra careful when writing out my story as I did not want to redo the entire thing.
What do you feel is the most significant difference between writing by hand and using mechanized forms of writing? Which do you prefer and why?
The most significant difference between writing by hand and using mechanized forms of writing is the amount of time it takes. It took me thirty minutes just to write out my good copy of the essay while it will only take me under five minutes to type out the entire thing. Another significant difference is spell check. When I was writing out my essay, I realized that I had to double check a couple of words because I was not sure if I was spelling them correctly. I had relied on spell check for so long that I didn’t even realize I had forgotten the correct spelling of so many words. My preference would highly depend on what I need to do. If I need to write an essay or communicate with parents, I would much rather type. However, if I need to give feedback, due to all the symbols in chemistry and math, it would be much easier for me to write rather than trying to type up a chemical equation.
Hi Sarah,
Your handwriting is beautiful!
Perhaps because of your paper choice and other elements (e.g., numbered pages, name and course code in the top right), your text reminds me a lot of a school essay.
When writing chemical equations, I’ve also found that the text is more a conversation and each of the element symbols may need to be the focus. In this case, handwriting and also in-person conversations are much easier to convey the same text.
Thanks Linda
Hi Sarah,
That is a beautiful story. I wrote one similarly this year for Mothers day, and it was a poem written by hand. Since I was a bit late in sending it and my Mother is living a few provinces away, I needed to type in up as an email. I feel that so much is lost from my neat yet messy cursive letters and that it became less personal when typed. Your writing is neat and organized and also representative of the time you have dedicated as a child to learn to print, which my Mother (and maybe yours too) helped me with tremendously.
Thanks for sharing,
Emily
Thanks Emily!
Sarah,
What a beautiful story. Thank you for sharing it with us. Your courage to express emotion is admirable.
Valerie
Thanks Valerie!
Hi Sarah,
You have fantastic handwriting! I appreciate how you took the time to format and organize your writing so that it replicates a formal copy. These subtle traits showcase your professional attitudes to teaching! I am very impressed. In contrast, my handwriting is very messy, disorganized, and used as more of a though expression. I can appreciate the two mediums as they both serve different purposes.
Hey Abe, I didn’t know you were taking this course too!
My hubby’s hand writing is also very messy, which just shows that his mind and thoughts are working faster than his hand. He’s proud of it.