A Comparison of Children's Handwriting Under Traditional vs. Whole Language Instruction

Abstract

The current study compared the speed and legibility of handwriting produced by children exposed to either traditional instruction (TI) or whole-language instruction (WLI) in an attempt to determine whether children who received traditional, intensive classroom instruction in handwriting produce more legible andfaster handwriting. Forty-four TI students in lower (4 & 5) and upper (7 & 8) grades were matched with WLI students on the basis of chronological age, sex, grade, and dominant hand. All participants provided three writing samples exemplifying their best cursive writing, their usual cursive writing, and their handwriting under the pressure of speed. Samples were codedfor legibility using the Test of Legible Handwriting (Larsen & Hammill, 1989), and a total word count was computedfor speeded samples. The majorfindings showed that the TI children produced more legible handwriting than did WLI students, were able to write significantly more words under time pressure, and that these differences between the groups did not diminish with increased grade/age. The practical implications of the results are discussed, particularly the findings related to speed of transcription. Specifically noted in the discussion is the relationship between the automaticity of writing and compositional fluency that has emerged in recent research.