Australia’s numeracy and literacy skills show no major improvement, according to NAPLAN test results released earlier this week.

More than one million students across the country were tested for writing, spelling and numeracy in years 3,5, 7 and 9, and the conclusion reached is that the writing skills of year 7 and 9 students have dropped alarmingly, while other areas are stable.

Education Minister Christopher Pyne said results over the last 10 years were “indicative of the need to focus on traditional school education again”, as handwriting is increasingly neglected in favour of keyboard skills.

“The ongoing debate about the relevance and importance of handwriting against the ever-increasing importance of keyboard skills is a contentious one,” says Mary Spiropoulos from Oakleigh Grammar’s English department.

“Both forms of communication deserve a place in our modern, technological society, even though penmanship seems to have lost its soul in our busy lives.”

Whether it’s producing scripts, scrawling, scribbling or creating beautiful calligraphy, Mrs Spiropoulos believes that the effectiveness of written form communication “cannot be undervalued in the learning process”.

“It is through the continued practice and repetition of writing that new knowledge is understood and applied,” she tells Neos Kosmos.

“University and other higher education providers still expect students to complete examinations in the written form.”

Spiropoulos says the demands of living in a globalised world are increasing, creating more expectation that students commit to higher academic standards and rigorous study regimes.

“The speed with which communication travels these days is so fast that, to keep up, the written form needs the assistance of a keyboard [but] it is undesirable for handwriting to be splashed out in favour of keyboard skills.”

Academia aside, Spiropoulos says it would be a shame if future generations never experience the personal touch of a handwritten birthday card, the inscription in a beautiful book or the simple love a handwritten note can express.