Lovett, B. J., Lewandowski, L. J., Berger, C., & Gathje, R. A. (2010). Effects of response mode and time allotment on college students’ writing . Journal of College Reading and Learning , 40 (2), 64–79. https://doi.org/10.1080/10790195.2010.10850331

Word processing response mode and extended time were investigated for this essay-based college examination.

A total of 140 postsecondary students at a private university in the Northeast (U.S.) participated. The students were reported not to have disabilities.

The dependent variables were various measures of writing, including brief sentence composition, motor speed, and essay writing skill. The first was the Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Achievement, Third Edition, Form A (WJ-III) (2001), writing fluency subtest. Another was a one-minute sample of writing to measure handwriting and typing speeds. The last was the Test of Written Language, Third Edition (TOWL-3), Form B (1996).

The comparisons between accommodation conditions, and across the interactions, were complex across the performance tasks. Participants typed more words in the essay and speed tasks than they handwrote; however, there were no differences in quality between handwritten and word-processed responses. The extended time accommodation was associated with an increase in essay length, but only when produced with word processing, not handwriting. The length of essays was not related to their quality when handwritten, but longer word-processed essays scored higher. Limitations and possible future research directions were discussed.