Are typewriting and shorthand important today with computers and paperless records? Yes, say many typewriting institutes in Coimbatore.

S Jayakumar, the owner of the 45-year-old JK Typewriting Institute and Accountancy Centre at Thadagam Road tells the The Covaipost:“Old is gold, typewriting increases speed and accuracy because our eyes concentrate on a set space. Whereas in computers, students use triangular vision that is simultaneously seeing monitor, keyboard and the papers to be typed. It is also physically painful.”

He adds, “Typewriting will make students job proficient as the computer keyboards are QWERTY keyboards. In those days, the children learnt typewriting after Class X but now they go to computer classes. However, when they graduate and apply for jobs, typewriting becomes a wanted skill. So they come back to institutes to learn it.”

V Banu of the 50-year-old Oriental Typewriting Institute on Town Hall Road agrees: “Yes even colleges like PSG Arts send their students to our institute as typewriting is part of their course. We also get office goers and school students. We teach from a set of books and course duration is 3 to 6 months with a government certificate for higher and lower. Unfortunately we have stopped shorthand, as demand is less but my late father-in-law taught it.”

Jayakumar says that typewriting and shorthand are twin arts, he teaches both.

“If a student practices for 120 hours he can type 100-150 words per minute. All government jobs require typing and shorthand for steady employment. Certified typewriting graduates can also teach. Shorthand is a 200-year-old skill and even today all clerical government jobs like stenographer, typist and accountants require it. In Tamil Nadu, government-certified typewriting and shorthand are available in Tamil and English,” says Jayakumar.

He insists that both require extreme patience and that is lacking in the present generation.

Senior journalists also use shorthand for interviews and notes said a reliable source from a leading newspaper. This is because it takes time to master recording skills on smart phones and other devices.

Most typewriting institutes in Coimbatore have word of mouth customers with government accreditation and are easily located through online search engines.