Beyond Presentation Effects: Understanding the Role of Handwriting in the Holistic Rating of Young Students’ Writing in Grade 4

The goal of this study is to glean research insights into the role of handwriting on the holistic rating of young students’ expository writing samples in Grade 4. We focus on the interaction of compositional fluency—the total number of words (TNW) generated, the quality of the handwriting, the style of handwriting, and the holistic rating of writing outcomes on an expository prompt. We observed a relationship between fluency, quality of handwriting, and holistic rating of the writing samples, suggesting the need for sustained instructional attention to handwriting to achieve academic literacy in Grade 4. More than merely “looking pretty on the page,” the quality of the handwriting is reflective of the neuro-motor control required to develop fluency or productivity for the academic requirements of upper elementary writing tasks. Samples of Grade 4 handwriting are provided to illustrate and support the quantitative findings of this inquiry.