Teaching Keyboarding by Dr. Diane J. Fisher Assistant Professor Business Technology Education University of Southern Mississippi

Middle School/Junior High Keyboarding Term “keyboarding” replaced “typewriting” in early 1980’s Offered as a major part of curriculum and can be discussed in career exploration Focuses on personal use Letters, reports, outlines Keyboarding competence is major objective Proper use and care of computer Develop fluency Input of assignments Composing and proofreading

Important Information Keyboarding Techniques Learn the keyboard by introducing 2 characters a day Allow time to make-up; the goal is LEARN the keyboard Remember when learning the keyboard: No regard to formatting (don’t worry about errors) Emphasis toward speed while using correct finger placement Finally focus on accuracy (correctness) when all keys are learned Learn the applications for which the keyboard is used; for example: letter writing and spacing twice after periods at the end of sentences, spacing once after commas, etc. 3. Not all students are the same…so you have to allow for them to get caught up. Otherwise they become frustrated and nonresponsive. Those that are current allow them to do a fun keyboarding activity online. 5. Spacing correctly after punctuation is important because it is a feature that is measured in timed writings in the software.

Keyboarding on the Computer Concentrates on input rather than output More important skill than ever before Teach computer terminology Use keyboarding software as a supplemental resource

How to Teach Keyboarding Stimulus-response (Dictation) Teacher calls out a letter, student reacts with a stroking response Crucial when learning new keys Dictation helps students understand that keyboarding is practiced in rhythm They should utilize each stroke in sequence with a steady pace Association: Obviously, for the desired learning to take place, the response made must be the desired response. What is needed is some means of tying together the given stimulus with the desired response. When this happens on a consistent basis, the desired response is associated with the given stimujlus. Knowledge of results: KR provides four possible functions: reinforcement, correction, direction, and motivation. KR is necessary for stimulus response association to develop. Students must know when they have made a correct response to increase the probability that the response will be repeated consistently in the future. Likewise, students need corrective knowledge when an incorrect response is provided. Temporal contiguity: Means closeness in time. Useful for increasing the efficiency of learning. Temporal contiguity is required between the response and the reinforcement. In the beginning stages of learning the keyboard, one must ask the question: How can students most quickly respond to a given stimulus after having perceived it? The fastest way is for beginners to look at the keyboard. The contiguity principle states that, if even one response intervenes, the reinforcement is weakened. If a misstroke is perceived immediately, the student may remember the incorrect movement, thus receiving corrective information. Temporal contiguity requires keyboarding teachers to be on their feet moving up and down aisles so students can be given corrective feedback.

Keystroking Correct alignment of fingers with the keyboard Speed of finger movement in striking and releasing the key then returning the finger to home-row position The “feel” of the appropriate motion patterns In the beginning focus on speed, encourage students to focus on correct finger placement with each key stroke and not on the errors they are making Accuracy comes later after keys are learned

How To Develop Keystroking Skills Teach appropriate techniques Develop rhythm by focusing on techniques that encourage the use of optimal speed Teach the alphabetic keyboard first, introduce two keys each day Introduce the keys in whatever order will permit the earliest use of words and sentences for practice (follow the text)

How To Develop Keystroking Skills Permit sight keying in the beginning (watching their reach and location of the key using the correct finger), but encourage students to watch their copy as soon as they are able Focus on speed until substantial improvement has been made before shifting the focus to accuracy Review all keys learned each day before presenting new keys Students should work at 1-2 wpm increments above current speed until 5-6 wpm have been gained.

Develop Proper Keyboarding Techniques Sharp, fluent stroking Eyes on copy Feet flat on floor Fingers curved Wrists upright Keyboard at edge of desk/table Sit up straight Post techniques in the classroom and review each day.

How to become an Expert Typist Technique, technique, technique… Learn to type for long periods of time without hesitation Hesitations reduce speed and increase errors To reduce hesitations Concentrate on copy Maintain correct reading speed Reduce number of times you look from copy to machine Eliminate pauses between strokes

Reading Students should read at a speed that matches their keyboarding rate Pay close attention to sequencing of letters Poor reading habits result in spelling, punctuation, and paragraphing errors Correct habits of reading require typist to move eyes smoothly and continuously along lines of copy Typists read 1 second ahead of fingers Beginners about 1 letter ahead Advanced typists about 1 word ahead

Evaluation Must go on constantly Receive feedback about the correctness of their responses Should not be graded on correctness of their performance while learning a task/keys Keep grading and learning activities separate; assign grades for performance of the learned task

Measuring Speed Gross words a minute (GWAM) Total words divided by total minutes keyed Correct words a minute (CWAM) Subtract number of errors from total number of words and divide by minutes keyed

Proofreading A skill that must be taught read copy slowly word for word, twice—once for meaning and again for correctness of details read aloud from original while partner checks for errors in copy (reverse order & repeat for important documents) Emphasize to students to proofread everything and that includes electronic communications such as email, discussion boards, blogs, and wikis.

Evaluation of Keyboarding Performance Purpose diagnose weaknesses measure achievement motivate students determine grades

Evaluating Keyboarding Performance Methods subjective – primary method for assessing techniques and work habits give students a copy of rating scale objective – knowledge and performance tests Specify expected student performance and behavior in form of objectives

Keyboarding Resources Proven Techniques for Teaching QWERTY Keyboarding http://www.cwu.edu/~setc/ldtech/docs/Keyboarding_Techniques.pdf Teaching Keyboarding--When? Why? How? http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/tech/tech072.shtml Lots of Keyboarding Info – Timed Test, Games, Articles, etc. http://www.neisd.net/alphasmart/AS%20Binder/Keyboarding%20Hotlist/keyboarding_hotlist.html Keyboarding Resources – Activities http://www.tcet.unt.edu/START/instruct/general/kb-act.htm Suggested Keyboarding Activities http://www.sasked.gov.sk.ca/docs/elemkey/suggested.html Ideas for Keyboarding Instruction, Projects, and Activities http://www.sasked.gov.sk.ca/docs/midlkey/compapp.html#appa

Keyboarding Resources Keyboarding Games http://pdf.alphasmart.info/Keyboarding_Activities1.pdf More Games http://pdf.alphasmart.info/Keyboarding_Activities2.pdf Assessment of keyboarding skills http://jeffcoweb.jeffco.k12.co.us/isu/itech/keybo/technique.html Self-assessment http://jeffcoweb.jeffco.k12.co.us/isu/itech/keybo/selfeval.html Hands http://jeffcoweb.jeffco.k12.co.us/isu/itech/keybo/hands2.PDF Healthy computing http://www.pc.ibm.com/ww/healthycomputing/index.html

References McLean, G. N. (1995). Teaching keyboarding. Little Rock, AR: Delta Pi Epsilon.