Why do handwriting make you smarter?

In the modern world, writing by hand quickly goes into oblivion. No self-respecting company can do without a computer today, and confident use of many programs begins with the study of hot keys to do it faster and faster.

Primary and secondary schools in all developed countries now add typing courses to their main educational programs.

What's better?

We lose the importance of records by hand, but what do we lose with them? According to scientific research, we are losing intellectual potential. Researchers from Princeton University and the University of California at Los Angeles have conducted a series of studies aimed at demonstrating the differences between students who write notes by hand and those who print information during the lecture.

Participants of the experiment made notes on the lecture using one of two methods of note-taking, and after the lecture they were asked to take a test of the material passed on the lecture. A repeat test for the same material was carried out a week later. The results showed that both groups of students succeeded on the first test, and a week later they were able to recall more and demonstrated a better understanding of the material of the students who did the tapes by hand.

Why do we need handwriting?

At the University of Nebraska, psychologist Kenneth Kivra conducted a similar study, where students were interviewed immediately after the lecture and presentation of PowerPoint, and again after a brief review of their notes. Those who took notes on the laptop had a slight advantage in terms of indicators for the first test, and students with notes taken by hand showed significantly better results after reviewing the records.

Psychologists suggest that the reason, most likely, is that the hand-written records are shorter, more organized, and better reflect the essence of the information obtained, for example, in graphs, diagrams and tables.

Understanding and remembering

During the printed set of information, it is easiest to outline it verbatim. This can help in the short-term memorization of the facts, but it does not contribute to a deeper understanding of the topic and does not allow the formation of cause-effect and other logical connections not only from new information, but also from already acquired facts. Students who take notes by hand show better results: they quickly think through and process information, recording it in such a way as to simplify its subsequent deep perception.

Computers in the near future will not go anywhere, but the art of writing by hand leaves us with great speed. And yet, do not deprive the brain of the future generation of a small advantage in the perception, understanding and memorization of new information.