Is handwriting really better for learning? Here’s what the research says

“Pens are dead. Paper is dead. Handwriting is a relic.” That was the Guardian’s declaration back in 2015. 

And little wonder: we have raised a generation of digital natives, whose grasp of Grammarly, word processing software, and now AI tools, has reshaped how they communicate, learn, and solve problems. 

Yet, research shows that putting pen to paper offers cognitive benefits that digital tools can’t replicate.

Handwriting leads to “widespread brain connectivity”

A recent study in Frontiers in Psychology monitored brain activity in students taking notes and found that those writing by hand showed “more elaborate” brain connectivity patterns. Specifically, handwriting resulted in “widespread theta/alpha connectivity coherence patterns between network hubs and nodes in parietal and central brain regions”. 

What does this mean, and why does it matter? 

Alpha band connectivity is linked to long-term memory performance and is highly task-specific, while theta band connectivity relates to working memory and the ability to grasp new information. This suggests that the increased brain connectivity from handwriting isn't just about muscle use, but has a direct bearing on learning. 

What explains these effects? The authors, F. R. (Ruud) Van der Weel and Audrey L. H. Van der Meer, suggest that because handwriting requires “concurrent spatiotemporal pattern from vision, motor commands, and proprioceptive feedback provided through fine hand and finger movement”, it forces students to pay attention to what they are doing.

In other words, as you draw a letter or write a word, you’re transforming your perceptual understanding into a physical action using your motor system. This creation is then sent back to your visual system for further processing, reinforcing the link between the action and the images or words it represents.

Typing, on the other hand, “requires mechanical and repetitive movements that trade awareness for speed.”

Taking notes by hand makes the brain engage in “heavy lifting"

This latest study adds to a growing body of research confirming that the pen is mightier than the keyboard.

This study from 2021 also confirmed a pen and paper’s role in improving vocabulary learning in foreign languages, as compared to a stylus and tablet, and a keyboard. 

And back in 2014, research by Pam Mueller and Daniel Oppenheimer revealed that students who take notes by hand learn more effectively than those using laptops. 

In three experiments involving students from Princeton and UCLA, the researchers found that while laptop users took more notes, those who wrote by hand demonstrated a stronger grasp of the material, better conceptual understanding, and improved ability to synthesise and generalise information.

They found that those who took notes with their laptop tended to transcribe verbatim, reducing the processing that would be involved in transforming the information into their own words.

What does it all mean for teachers?

The first thing to note: the authors of the 2024 study don’t discourage the use of technology in the classroom, noting the importance of “keep[ing] up with continuously developing technological advances.” 

Laptops, tablets, and smartphones can clearly be more effective tools for penning those lengthy history and English literature essays and conducting research. They also promote more equitable access to educational resources.

However, overreliance can prompt “cognitive offloading”, whose benefits for immediate performance on different tasks are counter-balanced by apparent harms for long-term memory formation. 

Moreover, research suggests that the action of handwriting engages different brain regions at different levels than other forms of learning experiences, such as reading or observing. 

Simply put, something fundamental to the learning experience will be lost in a move to entirely digital-based learning. 

Schools across the globe appear to be recognising this: this September, students in the Finnish town of Riihimäki returned to school armed with backpacks full of books, marking a shift after a decade of state-supported efforts to promote laptops and other digital devices in classrooms.

California also recently joined two dozen US states that have made some form of cursive education mandatory, passing a new legislative bill. 

So, where do UK schools and teachers go from here? 

The curriculum may wish to ensure students receive foundational handwriting instruction, with guidelines established to guarantee a minimum standard, potentially including the reintroduction of cursive writing.

At the same time, it's important to integrate technological advances thoughtfully, creating an awareness of which writing methods—handwritten or digital—are most beneficial in different contexts.