THE EDUCATIONAL AND 
 PRACTICAL VALUE OF THE 
 STUDY OF SHORTHAND 
 
 BY RUPERT P. SORELLE 
 
 GREGG EDUCATIONAL MONOGRAPHS
 
 This hook is DHF -<r the last
 
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 The 
 
 Educational and Practical 
 
 Value of the Study of 
 
 Shorthand 
 
 BY 
 
 * 
 
 P 
 
 RUPERT P. SORELLE 
 
 VICE-PRESIDEHT OF 
 THE GREGG PUBLISHING COMPART 
 
 
 LJTHERN BRANC1 
 
 IIVERSfTY OF CAUF8Ri 
 LIBRA 1 
 
 E 
 THE GREGG PUBLISHING COMPANY 
 
 NEW YOKE CHICAGO BOSTON SAN FRANCISCO LONDON
 
 COPYRIGHT, IQ2I, BY 
 THE GREGG PUBLISHING COMPANY
 
 
 S'T 
 
 THE EDUCATIONAL AND 
 
 PRACTICAL VALUE OF 
 
 THE STUDY OF 
 
 SHORTHAND 
 
 THE intensely practical value of short- 
 hand in the work of the world has so 
 completely overshadowed its educa- 
 tional value that the latter is rarely 
 considered when the question of its 
 addition to the curriculum of the school 
 or college arises. 
 
 Indeed, shorthand is commonly 
 looked upon as a mechanical art 
 something that may be picked up by 
 almost anyone in a few weeks' study. 
 It is this view of the subject that is 
 responsible for many of the shorthand 
 failures. 
 
 That shorthand has a great educa- 
 tional value I believe is realized by all 
 who have investigated the art or who
 
 2 Educational and Practical Value 
 
 are at all conversant with it. Con- 
 sider for a moment the processes through 
 which the shorthand writer goes in re- 
 porting and transcribing a speech. 
 
 First, there is the hearing and the 
 comprehension of the words, and the 
 grasping of the thought of the speaker; 
 second, the translation of these words 
 into sounds (I believe we commonly 
 think of words in their written or 
 printed form); third, the selection of 
 the shorthand material from which they 
 are to be constructed into tangible form; 
 fourth, the transferring of these im- 
 pressions to the ringers; fifth, the 
 manual execution of the forms. Here 
 are five distinct processes through which 
 each word must be put in the smallest 
 fraction of a second. 
 
 To add still further to the complexity 
 of the problem, the writer must follow 
 closely the sense of the matter being 
 spoken, or it will be impossible for him 
 to make an intelligent transcript. I
 
 of the Study of Shorthand 3 
 
 think you will agree with me that this 
 is a form of mental discipline com- 
 bined with manual execution which 
 has a value that is worthy of the con- 
 sideration of thoughtful teachers. 
 
 The transcribing, or writing the 
 shorthand notes on the typewriter, is 
 another phase of the work that has an 
 important educational advantage, train- 
 ing as it does the judgment, the powers 
 of perception and analyzation, and de- 
 veloping what has been well termed a 
 "logical imagination." The reader of 
 shorthand must analyze the shorthand 
 symbols, give them their sound values, 
 combine the sounds into words, grasp 
 the significance of phrase signs, and 
 translate the whole into English sen- 
 tences. In other words, the practice of 
 shorthand writing develops such intel- 
 lectual qualities as were possessed by 
 men like Kelvin the "constructive 
 scientific imagination which bodies forth 
 the forms of things unknown with such
 
 4 Educational and Practical Value 
 
 definition and precision that the me- 
 chanical faculties work up to the con- 
 ception as to a visible model." 
 
 Of course, it will be understood that 
 after a while a large part of this selec- 
 tion of material and the discrimination 
 in the use of it becomes virtually auto- 
 matic; yet it must be borne in mind 
 that at one time it was conscious and 
 hence had a deep educational signifi- 
 cance. All of these fundamental proc- 
 esses in writing were at the beginning 
 necessarily slow and deliberate. The 
 speed in execution increased only as the 
 capacity to handle the material with 
 speed developed. Nevertheless, they 
 possessed the highest disciplinary value 
 and continue to possess it. The short- 
 hand writer never reaches the point 
 where his work is completely automatic. 
 He always has new words and new com- 
 binations of words to deal with. 
 
 To illustrate in a concrete, untech- 
 nical way, one of the difficulties: If
 
 of the Study of Shorthand 5 
 
 you had dictated to you an editorial 
 from a newspaper, or an article from 
 a magazine, and wrote it hurriedly 
 that is, at the top of your longhand 
 spee( l using the common abbrevia- 
 tions, dropping the terminations and 
 the past tense of words, omitting all 
 punctuation marks and capital letters, 
 and were then called upon to make a 
 correct transcript of your notes thus 
 taken, it would require some clear 
 thinking and the exercise of much judg- 
 ment to reproduce the thought and lan- 
 guage with fidelity. 
 
 Yet the stenographer does this and a 
 great deal more. It is far more difficult 
 to make such a transcript from the 
 shorthand notes for these reasons: The 
 actual physical representation of words 
 in shorthand is very greatly lessened, 
 as compared with longhand, as each 
 character when correctly executed has 
 a much greater power of expression; 
 the abbreviations are more numerous
 
 6 Educational and Practical Value 
 
 and the chances for error in form are 
 multiplied under stress of rapid writing, 
 making the identity of the character 
 less positive. All these present prob- 
 lems, in transcribing, that develop per- 
 ception, alertness, quickness of thought, 
 resourcefulness, discrimination, and 
 judgment to the highest degree. The 
 problem is comparable to that of hear- 
 ing a discourse in French or German 
 and translating it instantly into English. 
 Let us compare the study of short- 
 hand with that of one of our required 
 high school subjects a foreign lan- 
 guage French, German, or Latin. 
 The student of a language first takes 
 up the elementary sounds the vowels 
 and the consonants. These are com- 
 bined into words; he acquires a vocab- 
 ulary by memorizing. Next the forma- 
 tion of sentences engages his attention, 
 and, finally, proceeding from the simple 
 to the complex, the more difficult 
 matters of grammatical construction
 
 of the Study of Shorthand 7 
 
 and composition are considered, and 
 actual translation is undertaken. All 
 of these processes are paralleled in the 
 study of shorthand. The student learns 
 the elementary characters of the art 
 the vowels and consonants and is 
 drilled on the sounds. He gets a new 
 conception of words, and gains some 
 valuable experience in correct pronun- 
 ciation. He is used to thinking of a 
 word in its printed form; but in his 
 shorthand work he must become accus- 
 tomed not only to this form, but also 
 to the sounds of which it is composed. 
 The sounds have their shorthand equiva- 
 lents, composed of curves, both long 
 and short, and circles. These are com- 
 bined into words. The grouping of 
 words into phrases that is, a series of 
 words that may be expressed by a 
 single shorthand character or "outline" 
 is the next step. Finally the whole 
 sentence is written. In transcribing, 
 the process is reversed. Hence it may
 
 8 Educational and Practical Value 
 
 be seen how perfectly, in the study of 
 shorthand, synthesis is correlated with 
 analysis. 
 
 A brief comparison with geometry, a 
 study highly valued by educators for 
 its disciplinary effect upon the mind, 
 might also prove of interest. 
 
 Geometry is pre-eminently a study 
 that develops the analytical powers of 
 the mind clear, logical reasoning. It 
 has a distinct value also in inculcating 
 habits of preciseness, neatness, order, 
 and truthfulness. The same advantage 
 may be claimed for shorthand. The 
 shorthand writer is constantly analyz- 
 ing; and his decisions must be reached 
 and applied instantly. In taking his 
 notes, neatness and accuracy, which 
 practically form the basis of their 
 legibility, must be kept constantly in 
 mind. In transcribing the shorthand, 
 correct form and the most attractive 
 arrangement, as well as the absolute ac- 
 curacy of his work, demand his attention.
 
 of the Study of Shorthand 9 
 
 Every stenographer worthy of the 
 name has an ambition to make his 
 work accurate; if it is not accurate it 
 has no commercial value. He under- 
 stands this from the beginning; and 
 consequently his constant aim is for 
 accuracy which stenographically is a 
 synonym for truthfulness. Shorthand 
 does more than geometry in respect to 
 clear, logical thinking for it adds 
 speed to it. 
 
 Educators will concede, I believe, 
 that the process of shorthand writing 
 
 - if my statement of it has been correct 
 
 - is a pure application of the funda- 
 mental movement of mind, which is to 
 grasp a thing as an indiscriminate whole, 
 analyze it into its parts, and to correlate 
 these parts in relation to the whole. 
 
 Thus far, I have considered princi- 
 pally the disciplinary value of the art. 
 The advantages of a study of shorthand 
 are threefold: First, the mental dis- 
 cipline secured in the mastery and the
 
 io Educational and Practical Value 
 
 application of its principles; second, the 
 educational value of the writing and 
 re-writing of the matter taken in short- 
 hand; third, its practical or commercial 
 value. 
 
 The close affiliation of shorthand 
 with language gives to it, I think, one 
 of its greatest educational advantages. 
 Nothing can so familiarize one with 
 the wonders and beauties of the Eng- 
 lish language as does the constant 
 practice of shorthand. It compels a 
 study of the grammatical and rhetori- 
 cal phases of language and gives an 
 acquaintance with the details of it that 
 could hardly be so easily acquired in 
 any other way. It is to the student of 
 English what a course in dissection is 
 to the medical student but it goes 
 still further, because the shorthand 
 writer must reconstruct from the pieces 
 the thing he has torn apart. As has 
 been said, his work is synthetic as well 
 as analytic. Some striking instances
 
 of the Study of Shorthand n 
 
 have been noted of the value of short- 
 hand as an aid in teaching a foreigner 
 the English language in acquiring 
 correct pronunciation, in mastering the 
 intricacies of construction. 
 
 The shorthand writer in his work 
 as reporter, private secretary, stenog- 
 rapher to professional, literary, or busi- 
 ness men, is constantly brought in 
 contact with what is brightest and best 
 -where brains are the busiest. He is 
 constantly writing the cultivated dic- 
 tion of eminent speakers, writing out 
 the thoughts of great educators and 
 public men, and putting on paper the 
 plans and purposes of the busy captains 
 of industry. And what is more, he gets 
 ideas first hand hot from the forge. 
 He is thus enabled to study, to absorb, 
 to compare, to criticize, to enjoy, to 
 broaden his general information, to see 
 the reason behind the decision, to 
 familiarize himself with the work of 
 the world.
 
 12 Educational and Practical Value 
 
 But it is not at all necessary that this 
 valuable training be left until the short- 
 hand student is an adept in the art 
 a training which is so often looked upon 
 as a mere by-product, but which is in 
 itself sufficient reward for the study of 
 shorthand. In most of the high schools 
 where shorthand is taught, the dictation 
 course preparatory for practical work 
 is made an important feature. It gen- 
 erally . covers not only a drill in com- 
 mercial work, such work as ninety-nine 
 out of a hundred students engage in, 
 but also a great variety of other sub- 
 jects technical, educational, scien- 
 tific, legal and literary. This work is 
 intended primarily to give the student 
 facility in handling all classes of steno- 
 graphic work, but as he goes over this 
 matter at least twice in taking it in 
 shorthand and in typewriting it and 
 oftentimes a third time in revising and 
 in comparing it with the original, he 
 naturally absorbs a vast amount of
 
 of the Study of Shorthand 13 
 
 useful information and gets a most 
 practical drill in the use of the English 
 language. 
 
 Tbelieve that the study of shorthand 
 could be begun profitably much earlier 
 than in the high school perhaps in 
 the seventh or eighth grade so that 
 by the time the student reached the 
 high school he would have mastered 
 the mechanics of the art to such an 
 extent that he could make practical 
 use of his shorthand every day in his 
 high school and college courses in mak- 
 ing notes and taking the numerous 
 valuable extemporaneous talks of 
 teachers that are commonly lost. The 
 principal objection in offering the work 
 so early, however, would lie in the fact 
 that many students, learning that their 
 work had a commercial value, would 
 leave school before obtaining the broad 
 general education necessary to the high- 
 est success. This objection to taking 
 up the work so early is minimized
 
 14 Educational and Practical Value 
 
 largely by the fact that the demand 
 today is for the stenographer who has 
 a high school or college education. 
 Business men are more critical than 
 ever before and are willing to pay for 
 knowledge in addition to technical skill. 
 The practical uses of shorthand are 
 so varied and so well understood by 
 most of us that little need be said of 
 them. Shorthand is an indispensable 
 art in commerce, as is attested by the 
 fact that hundreds of thousands are 
 employed as stenographers. Business 
 men do not waste money on useless 
 employes. It is safe to say that short- 
 hand has been one of the greatest fac- 
 tors in the expansion of American com- 
 merce, for through its aid, as a means in 
 correspondence, the enterprising Amer- 
 ican business man gets business wher- 
 ever the United States mail reaches. In 
 the courts and in the legislative halls 
 of the state and national governments, 
 the shorthand reporter makes possible
 
 of the Study of Shorthand 15 
 
 an absolute record of the proceedings, 
 catching and recording every word 
 words oftentimes fraught with the great- 
 est import. The thoughts of statesmen, 
 great teachers, and lawmakers are 
 reported verbatim and preserved for 
 the use of the world. Its value to the 
 college student is great. In taking 
 lectures, briefing, collateral reading, 
 keeping notebooks, and in many other 
 ways, it affords him a reliable and time- 
 saving instrument. Its use prevents 
 the longhand from degenerating into a 
 scrawl. 
 
 To the young man or to the young 1 
 woman, shorthand offers a great oppor- 
 tunity either as a career or as a stepping- 
 stone. Many of our most prominent 
 public men and women business ex- 
 ecutives, transportation experts, lawyers, 
 judges, bankers, litterateurs, journal- 
 ists owe their positions to the start 
 shorthand gave them. Among these 
 to mention only a few are Frank
 
 1 6 Educational and Practical Value 
 
 Vanderlip, Charles Dickens, Arnold 
 Bennett, Edward Bok, Norman Hap- 
 good, Irvin Cobb, Dr. A. E. Winship, 
 George B. Cortelyou, William Loeb, 
 Jr., Judge Landis, Hugh Chalmers, 
 Judge Charles L. Guy, Samuel Insull, 
 Colonel Bope, Talcott Williams, Judge 
 Rhea Whitehead, Zelda Sears, Mabel 
 Urner, Alba Johnson. 
 
 The spread of the popularity of short- 
 hand in our high schools is, I think, not 
 only a recognition of its great utili- 
 tarian advantages, but also of the fact 
 that it is coming to be recognized as 
 having a very important educational 
 value as well.
 
 [Editorial Note] 
 
 CAN SHORTHAND BE INTRO- 
 DUCED PROFITABLY IN 
 THE GRAMMAR 
 GRADES ? 
 
 THIS is an increasingly important 
 question. The address presented in 
 this monograph throws much light upon 
 it. Although prepared by Mr. SoRelle 
 several years ago, it gives so clear and 
 accurate a statement of the educa- 
 tional value of the study and practice of 
 shorthand that it has come to be looked 
 upon as a classic in shorthand literature. 
 
 The ideas presented are of especial 
 interest at this time when the attention 
 of teachers and school supervisors all 
 over the country is being directed 
 toward placing shorthand in the course 
 of study for grammar schools. Short- 
 hand is now being recognized as not 
 17
 
 1 8 Editorial Note 
 
 only of very great utility, but also as 
 possessing marked educational value. 
 Furthermore, educators of today realize 
 more and more that subjects requiring 
 manual skill should be introduced early. 
 What Mr. SoRelle ventured as a sug- 
 gestion has come to be accepted as a 
 fact that shorthand can be studied 
 with great profit in the first years of 
 high school and even in the seventh 
 and eighth grades. Many cities have 
 introduced shorthand with success in 
 the grammar grades for its educational 
 and practical value, not with the idea 
 of training professional stenographers, 
 but to give students the benefit of a 
 practical use of shorthand. 
 
 47108
 
 GREGG EDUCATIONAL MONOGRAPHS 
 
 A series of monographs dealing with definite phases 
 of education, shorthand, and commercial training. The 
 following titles are now available: 
 
 MAKING SHORTHAND TEACHING EFFECTIVE. 
 By John Robert Gregg. Mr. Gregg discusses some 
 new tendencies in methods of teaching shorthand 
 of great value to teachers. 24 pages; bound in heavy 
 art paper covers 20 cents net 
 
 HANDWRITING EFFICIENCY IN JUNIOR AND 
 SENIOR HIGH SCHOOLS. By J. N. Snesrud. 
 The relation of longhand to shorthand and how a 
 development of shorthand skill early in the course 
 leads to far more effective results in all the in- 
 dividual's education are ably discussed by Mr. 
 Snesrud. 58 pages; bound in heavy art paper 
 covers 30 cents net 
 
 TYPEWRITING THROUGH RHYTHMICAL CON- 
 TROL. By A. B. Crosier. Mr. Crosier presents 
 a new idea in the acquirement of skill in typewriting. 
 36 pages; bound in heavy paper covers, 20 cents net 
 
 THE FOURTEEN POINTS IN SHORTHAND 
 TEACHING. By Hubert A. Hagar. The essentials 
 of technique in teaching shorthand are effectively 
 presented and applied. 28 pages; bound in heavy 
 art paper covers 20 cents net 
 
 OBSTACLES TO THE ATTAINMENT OF SPEED 
 IN SHORTHAND. Two papers, one by Frederick 
 R. Beygrau, dealing with the Mental Obstacles; the 
 other, by H. H. Arnston, dealing with the Manual 
 Obstacles. The sticking points in the acquirement 
 of shorthand speed are treated exhaustively from 
 two angles. 48 pages; bound in heavy art paper 
 covers 25 cents net 
 
 THE EDUCATIONAL AND PRACTICAL VALUE OF 
 THE STUDY OF SHORTHAND. By Rupert P. 
 SoRelle. Mr. SoRelle analyzes the processes of 
 learning shorthand and how they affect the student's 
 educational development and lead to practical ap- 
 plication. 28 pages ; bound in heavy art paper 
 covers 20 cents net 
 
 Other Titles in Preparation 
 Prices subject to change without notice 
 
 THE GREGG PUBLISHING COMPANY 
 
 HEW YORK CHICAGO BOSTON SAN FRANCISCO LONDON
 
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