So, is handwriting pertinent in the 21st Century digital age?
The answer is a definite ‘yes’, but why? The approach to teaching handwriting has certainly been influenced by technology, but we still need to teach handwriting, particularly for boys, who we know on average, develop their fine motor skills at a slower rate and later than that of girls.
It’s not a simple case of handwriting versus technology. There is obviously a place for both. The challenge today for the Junior School teachers is to teach both handwriting and keyboard skills. There needs to be a balance, but opportunities to handwrite need to be prioritised, as speed and clarity will only come with practice.
Research indicates a strong link between handwriting and positive learning outcomes. It shows that writing by hand activates the parts of the brain influencing memory, impulse control, and attention, and suggests that writing by hand moves information from short term to long term memory.
As with most aspects of literacy, the early years of a child’s development are where strong foundations are established. Letter formation plays a key role in the essential link between aural, oral and visual communication. Letter formation links strongly with letter recognition, contributing to early reading success. Hand eye coordination and fine motor skills correlate positively with learning abilities and communication. There is much to support the continued focus on handwriting in these formative years.
An obvious factor for many, when considering the value of handwriting, is that many our Senior School internal and external examinations are still handwritten and will be for the foreseeable future. Speed and clarity are so essential during examinations. The clear advantage of being able to maximise their time allocation by writing quickly, while maintaining a legible style, is crucial to their success.
As is the case in our Explicit Teaching approach in relation to embedding skills and processes, we aim for automaticity when writing, where the handwriting is automatic and the focus can then be placed on the content, in our commitment to increase and enhance the writing experiences of all students. We need to help our boys learn and develop fluency in their handwriting so they can concentrate on what they are writing, rather than the act of writing itself.
Handwriting will remain a fundamental skill we continue to teach and develop in our commitment to enhance the writing experiences for the boys.
Mr Ben Gates
Head of Junior School