Handwriting notes in class might seem old-fashioned as digital technology affects nearly every aspect of learning. But a recent study in Frontiers in Psychology suggests that taking notes with pen and paper is still the best way to learn, especially for young children.
The new research builds on a 2014 study that suggested people may type notes quickly, without thinking much about what they're writing-but writing by hand is slower and makes them actively pay attention to and process the incoming information. This conscious action of building on existing knowledge can make it easier for students to stay engaged and grasp new concepts.
To understand specific brain-activity differences during the two note-taking approaches, the authors of the new study sewed 256 electrodes (电极) into a hairnet. These sensors let the scientists record 36 students' brain activity as they wrote or typed words displayed on a screen. When students wrote by hand, the sensors picked up widespread brain connectivity throughout visual regions that receive and process sensory information, and the motor cortex (运动皮层) that helps the brain use environmental inputs to inform a person's next action. Typing, however, resulted in minimal activity in these brain regions.
Vanderbilt University educational neuroscientist Sophia Vinci-Booher says the recent study highlights the clear tie between physical actions and concept understanding, "As you're writing a word, you're taking this continuous understanding of something and using motor system to create it." That creation then affects the visual system, where it's processed again-strengthening the connection between an action and the words associated with it.
Vinci-Booher notes that the new findings don't mean technology is always a disadvantage in the classroom. Digital devices can be more efficient for writing essays and offer more equal access to educational resources. However, there's a growing trend of relying on digital devices to perform cognitive (认知的) tasks, such as taking photos instead of memorizing information. Yadurshana Sivashankar, an researcher at the University of Waterloo says, "If we're not actively using these areas, then they are going to become worse over time, whether it's memory or motor skills."
