Want your students to learn quickly? Ditch the computers and give them a pencil and paper.
According to recent research, those who write the new language they’re studying by hand learn faster and the most thoroughly.
The 42 adult students in the study were learning Arabic. They were divided into three groups: one who wrote the new language down by hand, one who typed it, and one who watched and interacted with videos.
The ones who wrote by hand learned more of the new-to-them alphabet and were able to use their recently acquired skills to both understand and make additional words. Further, the handwriting group became more adept at using Arabic before the other two groups. Even in tasks the students hadn’t been taught in, including spelling and reading, the handwriters came out best.
The researchers concluded that using handwriting leads to better learning outcomes whatever the age group and right across the (chalk)board.
