The purpose of this research was to determine whether the use of computer-assisted instruction (CAI) would enhance the teaching of handwriting skills. There is only one commercially available courseware for handwriting instruction and very little research in this area has been conducted. In view of the paucity of research, this investigator explored the effects of the use of CAI on the handwriting skills of Spanish-speaking children between the ages of 4 and 7 years. Subjects were randomly divided into three groups: Group 1 received traditional handwriting instruction, Group 2 participated in CAI, and Group 3 participated in CAI but also was given reinforcement. Pretests were administered to establish an initial baseline for each subject. Progress was measured weekly in order to determine the impact of the interventions. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare mean number of letters correctly written by each group each week. A significant difference in mean number of letters correctly written existed among the three groups of subjects at Week 5 (p =.04) and Week 6 (p =.019). Scheffe procedures revealed CAI with reinforcement resulted in significantly (p $<$.05) greater improvement in handwriting skills than did traditional instruction. It may be concluded from these results that CAI with reinforcement can greatly enhance the learning of handwriting skills.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UMASS/oai:scholarworks.umass.edu:dissertations-4366 |
| Date | 01 January 1993 |
| Creators | Torres Ortiz, Paula |
| Publisher | ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst |
| Source Sets | University of Massachusetts, Amherst |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Source | Doctoral Dissertations Available from Proquest |
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