For kids born in the late ‘90s and early 2000s onward, typing and using computers came as naturally as speaking and walking. Yet, school students in the previous decade didn’t quite have the same experience: they learned to type in courses up into their teenage years!
Yes, it’s true. If you were alive in those times, especially when typing courses were mainstream in the ‘50s –‘80s in high school, then you remember taking these classes and probably thinking ‘this is such a waste of my time! I’ll never need to type.’
In this guide, we’ll reminisce on the times where taking typing classes was completely normal for high schoolers, and reflect on how important this course ended up being for Generation Jones and Gen X students and why these classes aren’t as common now.
Key Takeaways
| – Vocational Origins: From the 1900s through the 1970s, typing was primarily a vocational “Business” elective aimed at students pursuing secretarial or clerical roles. By the 1980s, the rise of the personal computer shifted the curriculum toward “Personal Typing” for all college-bound students. – The “Waste of Time” Myth: Many Generation Jones and Gen X students originally viewed typing as an irrelevant skill, assuming only office assistants would ever need it. Today, most professionals cite it as the most practically useful course they took in high school. – Touch Typing: Mastering the “home row” without looking at the keys became a lifelong advantage for those who pursued careers in IT, software engineering, and law, providing higher efficiency than the “hunt and peck” method. – Modern Shift to Elementary: High school typing classes have largely vanished because the skill is now considered foundational. Most children today begin learning how to type in early elementary school to prepare for a fully digital learning environment. |
Why Did High Schools Have Typing Classes?
Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
From the early 1900s through the 1980s, high school typing courses were commonplace. Historically, typing was traditionally taught on a typewriter and was considered a vocational course that students could opt into.
But as home computers like Macs became more commonplace in the ‘80s and ‘90s, many schools required all students to start taking typing courses on computer keyboards, and many elementary and middle schools integrated typing classes into their schedules as well.
At this time, it was becoming evident that computers were becoming more standard and important for careers, so forward thinking school districts made sure their kids got the education they needed.
What Did High Schoolers Think of Taking Typing Classes?
University of Texas at Arlington News Service Photograph Collection, CC BY 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Ironically, as quintessential as computers are in our day to day lives, many students found typing class to be irrelevant and pointless. My own father, who went to high school in New Jersey in the mid-80s, even admitted to me that he failed typing class since he was certain at the time that he’d never need to type and wouldn’t go into a computer oriented field. To this day, he starts his morning every day during the week typing up emails on his PC.
That’s because, even at the time, many people only associated computers with office work, and typing was often seen as the responsibility of a secretary, who would type up what their boss and colleagues said out loud.
Little did they know that everyone would be using personal computers by the ‘90s (and they couldn’t ever fathom the pocket-sized computers we call smart phones today.)
Many students only took it because their mom said so or it was a school requirement. Could you imagine not knowing how to type properly today?
Check out what Redditors that grew up in this era had to say when they were reflecting on taking typing courses. Most confirm, it is such a relief they took this class!
- “I am also a ‘mom forced me to take the class’ typist. That one class better prepared me for the future than any other class in high school. I had to take remedial English and math classes in college, but being a touch typist has paid huge dividends my entire life.” – u/SciFiJim
- “Business typing at my HS. Best class I took to prepare me for college and a career in software engineering and IT.” – u/bigredthesnorer
- “‘Personal Typing’ back in the day. So long ago my first typewriter was a manual (non-electric). One of the most valuable high school classes because it taught me the keyboard which I still use today 45 years later” – u/DadofJM
- ” ’People who can type don’t go to the front line.’ That was enough for me. I took all the typing classes. It helped me through university instead.” – u/OsakaWilson
- “The only class I ever failed. I loved writing and had already taught myself to type, and had been typing pretty fast since I was 12. Of course it was “the wrong way” and I couldn’t relearn the right way.” – u/SentientPerson-1
- “I took Personal Typewriting in middle school during the 1969-70 school year. The class was about 1/4-1/3 boys because it was generalized for students who expected to be typing for their own future needs, i.e., it was not a Business Typing class. I enjoyed everything about it even though our typewriters were circa-1950 Smith-Corona office machines, and I got up to 65 wpm by the end of the first semester. Our teacher was lovely Miss Kowal from San Fernando Valley State College, and she demonstrated the value of rhythm as a speed-builder by having us type along to ‘Dizzy’ (Tommy Roe), ‘Sherry’ (Four Seasons), ‘Love Is Blue’ (Paul Mauriat) and ‘The Beat Goes On’ (Sonny and Cher). It was a blast! I got a job doing word processing at a law firm while I was a UCLA student, and I worked in office automation technology for the remainder of my working life.” – User deleted
Why Don’t High Schools Have Typing Classes Anymore?
National Archives at College Park, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
With how commonplace computers are today, most students are already well-versed in typing by the time they enter middle school, let alone high school. In fact, more schools have mostly moved away from pen and paper, and have students take all of their courses almost entirely online.
Now, kids are taking typing classes in early elementary school, to make sure they are sufficient with computers for their entire public education and eventual career. Turns out those typing classes that students didn’t truly appreciate back in the ‘70s and ‘80s sure did become pretty important, huh?
Reminisce on Your High School Years at Classmates
Does thinking of your old high school typing course take you back to those classic times of your life? What other aspects of high school stick out in your mind to this day?
Search for your old high school yearbook, and explore hundreds of thousands of others, by registering for free on Classmates® today. Use it as your own personal time capsule, to look for old pictures of the typewriters or computers you used in typing class, and to see what other aspects of high school life stick out in between those old yearbook pages.
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