Relationships between language input and letter output modes in writing notes and summaries for students in grades 4 to 9 with persisting writing disabilities

Robert Thompson; Steven Tanimoto; Robert Abbott; Kathleen Nielsen; Ruby Dawn Lyman; Kira Geselowitz; Katrien Habermann; Terry Mickail; Marshall Raskind; Stephen Peverly; William Nagy; Virginia Berninger

doi:10.1080/10400435.2016.1199066

Relationships between language input and letter output modes in writing notes and summaries for students in grades 4 to 9 with persisting writing disabilities

Assist Technol. 2017 Fall;29(3):131-139. doi: 10.1080/10400435.2016.1199066. Epub 2016 Jul 19.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ a Computer Science and Engineering , University of Washington , Seattle , Washington , USA.
² b Quantitative Studies and Measurement , University of Washington , Seattle , Washington , USA.
³ c Learning Sciences and Human Development , University of Washington , Seattle , Washington , USA.
⁴ d Teacher Education , University of Washington , Seattle , Washington , USA.
⁵ e Department of Psychology , University of Washington , Seattle , Washington , USA.
⁶ f Educational Consulting, Bainbridge Island , Washington , USA.
⁷ g Department of Health and Behavioral Studies, Teachers College , Columbia University , New York , New York , USA.
⁸ h Seattle Pacific University , Education , Seattle , Washington , USA.

Abstract

This study in programmatic research on technology-supported instruction first identified, through pretesting using evidence-based criteria, students with persisting specific learning disabilities (SLDs) in written language during middle childhood (grades 4-6) and early adolescence (grades 7-9). Participants then completed computerized writing instruction and posttesting. The 12 computer lessons varied output modes (letter production by stylus alternating with hunt and peck keyboarding versus by pencil with grooves alternating with touch typing on keyboard), input (read or heard source material), and task (notes or summaries). Posttesting and coded notes and summaries showed the effectiveness of computerized writing instruction on both writing tasks for multiple modes of language input and letter production output for improving letter production and related writing skills.

Keywords: handwriting; idea units; keyboarding; listening to sources; note-taking; reading sources; writing summaries.

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Child
Communication Disorders / physiopathology*
Communication Disorders / therapy
Handwriting*
Humans
Language*
Reading*
Self-Help Devices*
Students

Grants and funding

P50 HD071764/HD/NICHD NIH HHS/United States