Neuroscience in Learning: Handwriting or typing?

Written By Christopher Kim

Introduction

Let’s imagine you have a test tomorrow and need to study. You look at the notes and practice questions and struggles where to start. Do you have to start writing key concepts by hand or computer? Or do you have to try solving practice questions first? Fortunately, scientists in the field of neuroscience were also intrigued by this question and have done multiple researches. In this article, I would like to introduce several researches about different aspects of the learning process, in a neuroscientific way. 

Handwriting or typing?

As digital technology continues to evolve, many people are used to doing productive work through their digital devices. Not only adults, but young children were also encouraged to use digital devices. As a result, classrooms are getting more digitized. However, in terms of learning, scientists have continuously questioned the effectiveness of typing when you absorb new knowledge. 

The research held in Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) showed us that high-density EEG, the test used to estimate the electrical activity of a brain, was measured when participants performed handwriting. Participants were first shown fifteen pictionary words and then asked to either hand write or type on the computer. The EEG data were recorded throughout the experiment, mainly focusing on the interaction between different brain regions. The results indicated that there was stronger connectivity in theta and alpha frequency bands during handwriting, than typing. In other words, handwriting was more strongly connected to the function of learning and long-term memory in the brain. However, typing caused slightest activity in the same areas of the brain. The researchers of this experiment have concluded that handwriting activity is crucial for learning experiences, as they promote various functions of the brain and invigorate complex neural networks of the brain. Although digital devices bring many positives to the enhancement of our learning experiences, it is important to recognize that a balanced amount of handwriting is also crucial to maximize the outcomes of learning.

Sophia Vinci-Booher, an assistant professor of educational neuroscience at Vanderbilt university also agreed to the statement from this research, as she says “As you’re drawing a letter or writing a word, you’re taking this perceptual understanding of something and using your motor system to create it.” 

Correlation between memories and handwriting

Now, let’s explore the correlation in handwriting and memory retention. The research held in University of Waterloo revealed that when people draw, write, or speak out the words while they are reading, they tend to focus more on their ongoing activity, which is receiving information. To be specific, results indicated that participants had better memory performance and high recognition accuracy when drawing and writing. The researchers from University of Waterloo were also able to discover the fact that prototypical drawings often reinforced the memory of concrete words, while distinctive drawings enhanced the memory of abstract words. 

Yadurshana Sivashankar, a cognitive neuroscience graduate student at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, also stated that when the brain transforms verbal information into written format, it activates the motor programs of the brain, ultimately leading to the creation of multiple hand motions. She said that “When you’re writing the word ‘the,’ the actual movements of the hand relate to the structures of the word to some extent.” Participants were told to memorize the displayed action verbs and do correlative activities, such as handwriting or drawing. The result also showed that the participants who performed handwriting or drawing tend to memorize better. These activities of transforming the verbal or visual information, makes our brain to strengthen the interconnections between various neural networks, which ultimately makes it easily accessible when needed. 

Conclusion

It’s not hard to find people writing notes on their smartphones instead of paper, taking photos of important information instead of trying to process through their brain, or being dependent on GPS to navigate themselves instead of memorizing. And now this has been extended to our education scene. Studies above show us that handwriting is more effective when it comes to learning and memorizing. With these results, experts do not believe the use of digital devices in the classroom is a positive change in the education scene. Though digital devices are a huge source of information, researchers warn educators that there should not be excessive use, as it can cause “cognitive offloading.” which can cause our brain to slow down on learning pace. To prevent these problems, balance of digital improvements and traditional handwriting techniques should be taken into consideration in all education fields. 

References

1. Van der Weel, F. R. (Ruud), & Van der Meer, A. L. H. (2023, November 28). Handwriting but not typewriting leads to widespread brain connectivity: A high-density EEG study with implications for the classroom. Frontiers. https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1219945/full 

2. Gilbert, S. J., Boldt, A., Sachdeva, C., Scarampi, C., & Tsai, P.-C. (2022, July 5). Outsourcing memory to external tools: A review of “intention offloading” - Psychonomic Bulletin & Review. SpringerLink. https://link.springer.com/article/10.3758/s13423-022-02139-4 

3. Roberts, B. R. T., & Wammes, J. D. (2020, September 16). Drawing and memory: Using visual production to alleviate concreteness effects - psychonomic bulletin & review. SpringerLink. https://link.springer.com/article/10.3758/s13423-020-01804-w 

4. Hu, C. (2024, February 21). Why writing by hand is better for memory and learning. Scientific American. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-writing-by-hand-is-better-for-memory-and-learning/