Science and Technology Daily, Beijing, January 31 (Reporter Zhang Mengran) A study published in the new issue of "Frontiers of Psychology" shows that handwriting has higher brain connectivity than keyboard typing, which highlights the importance of exposing students to more handwriting Necessity of activity.
As digital devices gradually replace pen and paper, handwritten notes are becoming less common in schools and universities, as using a keyboard is often faster than writing by hand. However, the latter was found to improve spelling accuracy and memory.
To find out whether the process of handwriting increases brain connectivity, researchers from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology studied the underlying neural networks involved in both modes of writing.
The researchers collected EEG data from 36 college students who were repeatedly prompted to write or type words that appeared on a screen. When writing, they used a digital pen to write cursive directly on the touch screen; when typing, they pressed keys on the keyboard with one finger. High-density EEG uses 256 small sensors woven in a mesh and placed on the head to measure the brain's electrical activity, recording for 5 seconds per cue.
The results showed that connectivity in different brain regions increased when participants wrote by hand, but not when they typed. The visual and motor information gained through precise control of hand movements when using a pen contributes significantly to brain connectivity patterns that facilitate learning.
Although participants used a digital pen to write by hand, researchers said the results were expected to be the same as when using a real pen to write on paper. Researchers believe that print writing is also expected to have similar learning benefits as cursive writing, since the movement of the fingers when forming letters promotes brain connectivity.
In contrast, the simple act of tapping the keyboard repeatedly with the same finger is less stimulating to the brain. This also explains why children who learn to write and read on a computer may have difficulty distinguishing letters that are mirror images of each other, such as "b" and "d." Because they don't feel with their own bodies what it feels like to write those letters.
Researchers say there is a need to give students opportunities to use pens instead of typing in class. But it’s also important to keep up with ever-evolving technological advancements. Students learn more and retain better when writing class notes by hand, while using a computer with a keyboard may be more practical when writing long texts or essays.