There’s no doubt that Gen Z and Gen A are a tech savvy bunch. They have grown up in a world of technology that we could only imagine as children. One thing that remains steadfast in tech though in the humble keyboard and mouse. Despite the explosion of devices and innovation the simple keyboard remains the main input method from human to computer.

A growing number of students are reporting they can barely type and have never learned touch typing. Gen Z and Gen A have the touch screen skills but not the typing skills that are going to be increasingly needed in education. More and more exams are moving online and it is feasible that all exams will be online by the time our children are in High School and College.

Touch typing skills become essential in an exam environment as there’s a direct link emerging between a student's ability to touch type and exam scores. This is because the faster a student can type the easier their ideas will flow from their brain to the computer screen.

Currently the US department of education reports only 44% of students have ever taken a keyboard skills course and that figure is falling. It is often assumed that children can type and use basic computer programs because they spend so much time on devices but it simply is not the case.

So what are we doing about this at ADS? Well our students have been learning to touch type for over 5 years and 2 years ago we moved touch typing as a skill from 6th grade down to 3rd grade. It was felt that 6th grade was too late to learn this vital skill. So our 3rd graders have weekly sessions on touch typing. Equipping them for the future!