Organization: PURDUE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
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Approved-By:  "EDTECH Moderator" <21765EDT@MSU.BITNET>
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.edtech
Date:         Wed, 19 Aug 1992 17:21:30 EDT
From:         MARK WHITMAN <WHITMAN@PURCCVM.BITNET>
Subject:      Re: Keyboarding skills? Help needed!
              19 Aug 1992 01:42:30 EDT from <LDD1_MAIL@ecc.tased.edu.au>

Keyboarding is a universal problem for all elementary schools.  Not to
teach keyboarding  to all students is unfair.  It is unfair to give students
a tool as powerful as a computer without giving them the skills needed to use
it properly, and to not teach keyboarding also provides an unfair advantage to
the student who has been fortunate to learn keyboard as opposed to students who
have not.  It often occurs that a lesser qualified student will achieve better
using the computer only because (s)he knows how to keyboard when more capable
classmates do not.

The best solution I have found is to implement a K-8 keyboarding curriculum.
At first, the concept of an additional curriculum scares teachers, who do not
feel prepared and who do not think they have the time to teach keyboarding.
Actually, it is not all that bad.

Students cannot truly learn to keyboard until their hand span and motor skills
have matured.  This is about the third grade for most students; however, K-2
students can be taught to keep their right hand on the right side of the
keyboard and their left hand on the left side.  Research shows that students
learn keyboarding skills best, if they practice them daily over an extended
period of time, rather than periodically (such as every Monday).  If you can
capture 20 minutes a day for 30-40 consecutive class days for every student
3-8, you can provide them the keyboarding skills they need.

Reinforcement is also very important.  It is important that students be given
a 3-5 minute exercise to start each session.  It is important that teachers
themselves know how to keyboard, and that they correct poor keyboarding
skills among their students.  It is important that you provide teachers the
proper in-service and training before implementing a curriculum, so that
they feel comfortable teaching the skills.  Although they may say otherwise,
the true reluctance of teachers goes back primarily to a lack of confidence.
Once they are confident with keyboarding themselves, their resistance will
fall away.

I suggest that you develop a K-8 keyboarding curriculum, and that you
intrust the development to a competent elemntary teacher, a competent
middle school teacher, a high school business ed. teacher and an
administrator.  Be sure to include the high school business ed. teacher, as
they often feel very threatened by elementary keyboarding as an invasion of
their turf.

Also don't miss out on the opportunity to allow the high school teacher to
team teach with an elementary teacher by offering keyboarding summer
classes.  I've offered three week class (2 hours per day) for fourth graders,
charging the amount required to cover the materials and the salaries.  We had
to turn students away.  By offering the classes in early August, you will hit
 a time when parents are looking for execuses to get the kids out of the house,
plus the instruction will be received just before the start of the new school
year when it will be most beneficial.

The best curriculum I am aware of was developed by the Tippecanoe School
District in Lafayette, Indiana.  Contact Joanne Troutner (317) 474-2481,
21 Elston Road, Lafayette 47907 about obtaining a copy.

I hope this helps.

**************************************************************************
**  MARK WHITMAN                                        (317) 463-9130  **
**  6515 INDIAN MEADOW DRIVE                  BITNET:  WHITMAN@PURCCVM  **
**  WEST LAFAYETTE, IN.  47906                       PRODIGY:  RCVN75A  **
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