Frequently Asked Questions from Teachers

Here are some questions that our keyboarding experts have been asked many times in the past.

When should children begin learning keyboarding?

Teachers' opinions often differ on this subject. This question can be divided into two distinct issues, "When is a child ready to begin learning to keyboard?" and "When should keyboarding instruction begin in schools?"

A child is ready when he or she is able to move his or her fingers independently on command, and has shown an interest in using the computer for something other than games.

Teaching keyboarding in elementary school has become an important issue because of the increasing presence of computers in the classroom. Teachers are under pressure to use the computers in their classrooms and the most obvious use is for writing.

Keyboard instruction should precede any alphabetic entry activities. Ideally, students should be taught how to properly operate the keyboard before they have developed poor keying habits using a hunt and peck” system of fingering. Word processing should not be done before the student has learned which finger is to be used to strike each letter key.

What is the ideal furniture setup?

• a desk large enough for the computer parts and one which is adjustable for people of different sizes
• a 5-legged chair with a comfortable, but firm, adjustable seat
• a movable screen and keyboard to accommodate size differences among users
• a good light source from above and behind, with no glare on the screen

Unfortunately, the ideal is usually not available in most schools. Chairs suitable for the very young students to use at the computer are rarely provided. Desks may not be adjustable, but perhaps different heights are available. Information on modifications that can be made in school and at home can be found on the Workstation Modification Page.

How long does it take to learn to keyboard?

Over the years, there have been many claims that keyboarding can be taught or learned in a few hours or a few days. If "learning to keyboard" is simply learning which finger goes where so that one can use all eight fingers to enter text, then you can learn in a few hours or a few days, depending on the readiness and maturity of the learner. However, to learn to keyboard by touch so that text entry can be done quickly, with accuracy, and with automatic reaches to the keys, takes far longer than a few hours or a few days.

Learning to touch type is a process that involves overlearning. Through frequent, purposeful practice, the fingers become accustomed to making precise movements to all of the keys. Of course, the correct posture and hand position must be used in each practice session. As with any psychomotor skill, countless repetitions of identical movements will result in them becoming automatic.

Which should be emphasized, speed or accuracy?

In learning to keyboard by touch, too much concentration on speed can be very destructive. Control is lost and the resultant fingering is erratic. On the other hand, too much concentration on accuracy freezes the fingers. The anxiety felt about making errors fosters peeking at the keys, a habit you definitely do not want to encourage. The best answer depends on the stage of learning.

In the beginning, the goal is to strike the keys smoothly with as few hesitations as possible. Errors are disregarded for the most part as accuracy will improve with practice. You cannot expect students to be as accurate when learning new reaches or when you are trying to increase your response rate. Later, when you focus on accuracy, you will use simple practice material and drop back a little in speed.

How is speed calculated?

What type of mistakes should I look for and how can they be corrected?

When you take an UltraKey skill check, UltraKey will report not only the number of errors you made, but what kind of errors you made. UltraKey organizes errors into three types; wrong keys, missed keys and extra keys. There can be different causes for these three types of errors. You may have already seen this chart:

Each of these problems has a different remedy. To find out the particular problem students are having, look at there skill check results. The types of errors that students make tell you what to look for. UltraKey will also give students advice based upon the types of errors they make.

Is giving keyboarding homework a good idea? How much and when?

Any place, any time is fine for practice to be done. That being said, certain conditions must exist for the practice to be beneficial. A note to the parents regarding home practice is recommended. You should include information about correct posture and hand position during practice, why it is so important and why parents should encourage it. Include information about repetitive stress injuries with details on how parents can adjust a less-than-ideal furniture setup at home so that it is safe and comfortable for their child.

The length of practice should be limited to 5 to 10 minutes for the very young and not more than 15 to 20 minutes for the older student. At first, the children want to practice for longer periods than is good for them. If this is allowed, fatigue and frustration will set in and their enjoyment in learning this new skill will wane. Short, but frequent practice sessions are far better than lengthy practices once a week. If the parents do not have the same computer program at home that is used at school, the teacher can suggest suitable practice material for the student to use.

Word processing tasks such as keying a note to a pal do not do the same job of fine tuning the skill of touch typing. Exercises on key location drills, chaining of letters, simple words and phrases are more productive in reinforcing the instruction given at school.

These are just a few of the questions addressed in the book and video How to Teach Keyboarding by Cheryl Cerri-Llamas and Frances Henderson.