Tag: dyslexia

New Research: Why Touch Typing Can Be a Game-Changer for Children with Dyslexia and Dyspraxia (DCD)

New Research: Why Touch Typing Can Be a Game-Changer for Children with Dyslexia and Dyspraxia (DCD)

 

Latest research on benefits of typing for children with dyslexia and DCD
Latest research on benefits of typing for children with dyslexia and DCD

For many children, handwriting is simply another classroom skill. But for children with dyslexia or Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD/dyspraxia), handwriting can become a major barrier to learning.

Over the past few years, researchers have examined whether touch typing can help these children participate more successfully in school. While the evidence shows that typing is not an immediate replacement for handwriting, it highlights significant benefits when children receive structured touch-typing instruction.

What Does the Latest Research Say?

A major review published in 2024 by researchers at Oxford Brookes University examined studies on typing in children with developmental disorders, including dyslexia and DCD.

The review concluded that:

  • Typing has become an essential educational skill.
  • Children with dyslexia and DCD often experience greater difficulty learning to type than their peers.
  • Simply giving a child a laptop is not enough—many require explicit touch typing instruction.
  • Schools need better methods of assessing typing skills so children receive appropriate support.

The researchers also noted:

“Typing is often recommended as a useful accommodation for students with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) and Specific Learning Disorder (SLD).”

New 2026 Study Highlights the Importance of Learning to Type Properly

A 2026 study comparing handwriting and keyboarding in primary school pupils with DCD found some interesting results.

Researchers discovered that:

  • Children with DCD had significantly poorer handwriting than their classmates.
  • Their keyboarding accuracy was similar to that of typically developing children.
  • However, most children had never received systematic keyboarding instruction and therefore typed more slowly than they handwrote.

The authors concluded that children with DCD may benefit greatly from structured touch typing lessons, particularly those whose handwriting is difficult to read.

This is an important point.

Typing is a skill—just like handwriting. If children are expected to use computers in school without first learning efficient keyboarding, they may never experience the full benefits.

Dyslexia: Typing May Support Learning

Another recent study (2025) investigated how handwriting and typing affect learning new words.

Researchers found that children with dyslexia showed:

  • Better spelling recall when learning through typing.
  • Better understanding of word meaning after typing activities.
  • Evidence that typing can reduce some of the challenges associated with spelling and orthographic processing.

While handwriting remains important for early literacy development, these findings suggest that touch typing can become a valuable support as children grow older and academic writing demands increase.

Why Touch Typing Helps

Children with dyslexia or dyspraxia often spend so much effort forming letters that less mental energy is available for thinking about ideas, spelling or organising their work.

Once touch typing becomes automatic, many children can:

  • Complete homework more quickly.
  • Produce longer pieces of writing.
  • Spend less effort on handwriting.
  • Edit work more easily.
  • Build confidence in written assignments.
  • Participate more independently in classroom activities.

The goal isn’t to replace handwriting—it is to give children another effective way to demonstrate what they know.

The Earlier Children Learn, the Better

Today’s classrooms increasingly rely on digital technology.

Secondary school students are expected to:

  • Complete assignments digitally.
  • Research online.
  • Produce presentations.
  • Sit computer-based assessments.
  • Use laptops for everyday learning.

Learning touch typing in primary school gives children time to develop speed, accuracy and confidence before these demands become part of everyday education.

How Searsol Can Help

At Searsol, we’ve been teaching children to touch type since 2008.

Our structured after-school classes are specifically designed to support children with:

  • Dyslexia
  • Dyspraxia (DCD)
  • Dysgraphia
  • Autism
  • ADHD
  • Other learning differences

Using our engaging Typewiz programme, children learn correct finger placement, improve typing speed and accuracy, and develop a lifelong skill that supports learning both inside and outside the classroom.

We also offer a free trial assessment, allowing families to see whether our programme is the right fit before enrolling.

Final Thoughts

Recent research reinforces what many parents and teachers have observed for years: technology can be a powerful educational support—but only when children are taught how to use it effectively.

Touch typing is not simply about using a keyboard. It is about reducing barriers, increasing independence, and allowing children with dyslexia and dyspraxia to focus on what really matters: learning.

References

Barnett, A. L., & Stuart, N. (2024). Understanding Typing Skill in Students With Developmental Disorders. Current Developmental Disorders Reports, 11, 63–74.

Khoury-Shaheen, R., & Weintraub, N. (2026). Keyboarding and handwriting in school students with Developmental Coordination Disorder. Reading and Writing.

Learning by Writing: The Influence of Handwriting and Typing on Novel Word Learning in Typically Developing Readers and Readers with Dyslexia. Learning and Instruction (2025).

Benefits of touch typing for a child with dyslexia

Benefits of touch typing for a child with dyslexia

Touch typing is a technique that creates a structure where you have to place different fingers on specific areas on your keyboard. You are using all your 10 fingers, and each one is in charge of a section or a column on the keyboard and it all starts with the home row.

Keyboard with speedskin covers

What is dyslexia?

Dyslexia is a common learning difficulty that mainly causes problems with reading, writing and spelling. It’s a specific learning difficulty, which means it causes problems with certain abilities used for learning, such as reading and writing and has nothing to do with intelligence. Dyslexia affects up to 10% of the population and may impact an individual’s ability to split words into their component sounds, or phonemes.

 

Significantly, individuals with dyslexia are perfectly capable of comprehending complicated ideas and should not be limited in their potential because of a misunderstanding of their abilities. Sometimes all a person needs is a little more time to process information, or a new approach to processing information, such as having to listen to an ebook rather than reading.

For many children and adults, developing good literacy skills involves overcoming the obstacles offered by specific learning impairments such as dyslexia. Dyslexia affects reading, writing, and spelling ability, but it can also lead to low self-esteem and a lack of confidence in the classroom.

 

Mnemonic devices help in the learning of challenging words’ spelling. Reading requires reduced cognitive work when high-frequency language is memorised. 

 

Also, dyslexics who have received touch typing education can reinforce phonics knowledge, employ muscle memory to remember word spellings, and facilitate the translation of concepts into written language.

This makes the process of writing less difficult and makes writing more seamless and effective.

-Typing vs writing contrast, MRI images Higashiyama et al, 2015, Japan, Cognitive NeuroScience PLOS

 

Why learning how to touch type is suitable for a child with dyslexia:

 

Ideas flow smoothly from the fingertips and onto the screen while touch typing. There isn’t any distraction generated by letter formation. Spelling errors may be easily made and corrected without the discomfort of erasure marks or hasty crossing out. Many children who have severe learning disabilities struggle with English spelling at first because of its extremely irregular nature and the number of sound mappings that may be applied to the same letter and letter combinations. 

 

Typing classes also expose students to numerous samples of written language, allowing them to become more comfortable with these words. It becomes simpler to spell and sight-read words after repeated exposure.

 

Children who learn to touch type via the type wiz programme have their phonics skills enhanced while simultaneously learning how to navigate a keyboard. This is due to the fact that letters and words are read aloud, presented on the screen, and typed by the pupil.

 

Producing work on a computer also frees the writer from attempting to process thoughts in a linear fashion. Dyslexic individuals in particular benefit from being able to capture thoughts and then structure them later on. It can even improve physical dexterity and actually help to handwrite.

 

    

 

Benefits of touch typing for someone who is dyslexic

  • Touch typing provides phonics training helpful to dyslexic children

Typing assists dyslexic children in breaking down words into smaller sounds. This can be really beneficial for reading and spelling. Touch typing allows a dyslexic child to develop sound-letter correlation. This teaches a child which letters create which sounds. Touch typing also eliminates the child’s need to make letters. This allows a child to concentrate more effectively on the sounds and the characters that correspond to them.

 

  • Improved productivity

Concentration improves and output increases. They will be able to ‘write’ faster, sometimes up to five times their normal writing speed. This will save them time and make learning so much easier and enjoyable

 

  • Less stressful in exams

It means that in class or in exams, children with dyslexia can get their thoughts down on paper more easily because they don’t have to worry about how to form a word on paper. They don’t have to hold a pen in the right way to make a mark and they don’t have to make the letters and words look neat or spaced out.

  • Touch typing employs multi-sensory learning and develops muscle memory.

Touch typing is multi-sensory as it links sight and hearing to touch. The tactile element of pressing the keys helps with remembering the sounds that make up tricky words. Touch typing also develops muscle memory which is very useful when learning letter patterns and spelling.

 

  • Typing at the speed of thought

Touch typing helps a child to think freely and type at the speed of thought as here is no distraction in having to look down at the keyboard to hunt and peck for the correct key. Making familiar patterns with the fingers starts to become automatic so that they begin to spell sight words and common words just by remembering the movement of their fingers on the keyboard.

  • Messy handwriting will be eliminated

Using a computer, individuals with dyslexia can type freely, without worrying about messy handwriting or errors. If they have learnt to touch-type properly, they will be typing accurately, barely having to hit the backspace key to correct their work. Another huge bonus, is when they are trying to stay focused on their thoughts.

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  • Increased confidence

There are so many reasons why touch typing is the right choice for children with dyslexia. It helps them to transform their thoughts and ideas freely into words, giving them the confidence and ability to communicate effectively.

 

 

Why not get your child to try out our free trial assessment touch typing course where you’ll gain valuable insights into your child’s current typing accuracy and word per min speed. 

There is no obligation to continue on and you will receive a report which will outline what your child’s typing speed will be in their first six months of attending a Searsol typing centre.

Click here https://searsol.com/find-centers/?search

 

Why touch typing is beneficial for children with dyslexia?

Why is touch typing beneficial for a child that has dyslexia?

Why is touch typing beneficial for a child that has dyslexia?

Why is touch typing beneficial for children with dyslexia?

Students that have dyslexia have found that learning how to touch type improves other skills such as spelling, grammar, vocabulary and reading ability. Students who have learned how to touch typing early outperform better in tests regardless of whether or not they have dyslexia. Touch typing is the ability to type without the need to look down at the keyboard. It is a proven system to learn the keyboard and is much better than learning to type using the hunt and peck method.

 

Students with dyslexia that have learned how to touch-type improve their muscle memory as they are training their brain to memories the keyboard. Like a person lifting weights in a gym and gaining muscle by repeating the reps, a student with dyslexia by practicing the constant repetition of the keyboard moments the brain muscle memory which in turn can help with cognitive abilities such as spelling words.  

 

Handwriting can be difficult for students with dyslexia. Mistakes made in handwritten exercises are difficult to correct, they tend to covered over by Tippex or crossed out words making the document a bit messy than if the document was typed up.

 

Any student that learns how to touch type has learned important skills in life that will make them more efficient and faster in the work they produce than producing handwritten exercises. Documents produced by typing them out are more professional and easier to read. 

 

Students that have dyslexia that has learned how to touch type can find it easier to capture their thoughts and input them directly on the computer using the keyboard and word processing software as opposed to writing on paper. Any spelling or grammar mistakes can be corrected using spelling and grammar readily available on word processing software.

 

According to a research study by (Weigelt Marom & Weintraub, 2015)

It was found that touch-typing instruction may benefit students in general, and more specifically, students with learning differences studying in higher education, which often use computers in order to circumvent their handwriting difficulties.

 

Touch typing provides students with dyslexia with an important communication layer that can be used to communicate directly with fellow students, teachers and parents. This will provide them with a life-changing skill that will help them through the education system and onwards in the working environment. 

At Searsol, we provide the classroom environment with children with learning differences such as dyslexia, dyspraxia (DCD), or dysgraphia who can learn at their own pace using our specially designed touch typing software. A free trial available at our centres and can be booked online at :

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