Students with Strong Keyboarding Skills Perform better on ACT Testing
It may or may not come as a surprise that a strong typing skill has a positive impact on a student’s ability to perform well on a standardized test such as the ACT. In a test given to 140 Utah 11th grade students, the higher the student’s typing speed, the better they performed on average on their ACT test. Students scoring a 28 or higher composite score had a typing average near 70 WPM, where their counterparts scoring 15 or below had an average typing speed of only 36 WPM.
Keyboarding Skills Promote Student Success
Teachers and administrators looking for ways to improve overall student performance should consider investing more time and effort into building keyboarding skills. Considering that high levels of coursework, tests, and general instruction are now computer based, it seems a logical conclusion that schools should be paying more attention to the level of proficiency that their students are achieving in keyboard mastery.
“Teaching students proficient keyboarding skills removes roadblocks that limit performance. If students have learned all of the information needed for an assessment but are unable to type it onto the computer in a timely manner, their scores will not properly reflect learning outcomes.”
~Beth Budinich
Job Market & Computer Skills
In the 2023 U.S. labor market, 92% of all careers now require some level of digital skills, yet 1/3 of workers are lacking in these foundational skills1. The ability to input data proficiently is certainly one of these skills that contribute to this digital skills divide. Keyboarding mastery is an essential first step in computer proficiency that is often overlooked and undervalued in today's education system. Proficient touch typing helps students gain confidence and achieve well academically, building foundational digital skills and preparing them for success both inside and outside of the classroom.
New Classroom Tool for Teaching Touch Typing
Schools who recognize the need for improved keyboarding skills should consider a new teaching tool that promotes touch type mastery. The KeyMaster Learning Lights Keyboard is specifically designed to solve the most common problem teachers see in students learning to type - they can’t stop looking at their fingers!
Its unique on/off backlighting quickly shows or hides keyboard lettering, allowing students to properly memorize the keyboard and achieve higher levels of typing speed and accuracy. Improved typing skills results in better overall performance in input-heavy classes, increased productivity, and higher achievement in standardized testing!
For more information on the benefits of the KeyMaster Keyboard for improving typing skills, go to www.keymasterkeyboarding.com or contact us at support@keymasterkeyboarding.com.
1 https://nationalskillscoalition.org/resource/publications/closing-the-digital-skill-divide/