Skip to main content
Home

Main navigation

  • Top stories
  • Health
  • Crime
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Tech
  • Culture
  • Sports
  • Weird
  • 1-1-2
Image
A child writing
A child writing - Credit: Photo: dotmatchbox / Wikimedia Commons
Politics
education
handwriting
fine motor skills
Anneloes Overvelde
Rijn van de Rozenberg
AVS
Petra van Haren
handwriting skills
primary schools
primary education
Monday, 31 July 2017 - 10:20
Share this:
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • linkedin
  • whatsapp
  • reddit

Handwriting neglected at Dutch primary schools: experts

Dutch primary schools underestimate the importance of handwriting, experts said to newspaper AD. Handwriting lessons are neglected to the point that over 30 percent of primary school students have difficulty learning to write, and by the end of group 4 nearly half of students have bad or illegible handwriting, according to the newspaper.

Too little attention is paid to kids' fine motor skills development, PhD student and child physiotherapist Anneloes Overvelde, writing lecturer Rijn van de Rozenberg and Petra van Haren of the general association for school leaders AVS said to the newspaper.

"In handwriting both linguistic and motor skills are required. When children learn to write, they need special attention for the motor side", Overvelde said. "Students have to go miles to write automatically and to keep attention on lessons."

Teachers and other educators see writing skills as less of a priority, especially given the rise of tablets and laptops. Due to this, combined with the fact that children now spend less time on crafts and coloring, children's motor skills will deteriorate, according to the experts.

Follow us:

Latest stories

  • No Amsterdam-London trains for months next year due to maintenance work
  • Protected bats hindering Dutch government's plans to insulate 2 million homes by 2030
  • Drag queens to lead Utrecht Pride boat parade in protest against anti-LBTQIA+ violence
  • Amsterdam cops arrest 55 in Red Light District case targeting street drug dealers
  • Cybersecurity firm Fox-IT could disappear from Netherlands in reorganization: report
  • Dutch tank delivery to Ukraine may be impacted by Swiss parliament vote

Top stories

  • No Amsterdam-London trains for months next year due to maintenance work
  • Renewable energy rose slightly to 15% in the Netherlands in 2022; Halfway towards target
  • Jumbo stopping Max Verstappen sponsorship after this Formula 1 season
  • Wettest spring since 2006; Good for groundwater levels
  • Ajax coach John Heitinga out as team's manager after worst finish in 14 years
  • Defense attorney Inez Weski, who represented Ridouan Taghi, to be released from jail

© 2012-2023, NL Times, All rights reserved.

Footer menu

  • Privacy
  • Contact
  • Partner content