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Abstract

This study explores the impact of art-integrated instruction on handwriting development among primary school students compared to the traditional approach. The study perceives handwriting as a form of visual and creative expression with the capacity to foster greater motivation and motor control, positioning it as more than simply a handwriting skill. A quantitative quasi-experimental pretest–post-test design was used for the study, comprising 39 primary school students divided into two main groups, namely, the experimental group (n = 20) and the control group (n = 19). For a period of four weeks, the control group continued to receive the traditional introduction while the experimental group received instruction that incorporated creative strategies such as visual patterning and lettering design. To collect data, a standardized handwriting quality rubric was used in addition to a teacher perception survey. Based on the findings, students in both groups improved. However, results from the experimental group indicated a significantly higher mean gain of 3.75 compared to the 1.42 mean gains for the control group. The paired t-tests served to confirm greater improvement for the art-integrated group compared to the control group. Moreover, teachers reported higher levels of student engagement (M = 4.36) and motivation (M = 4.41), further supporting the effectiveness of the approach. Overall, the study finds that employing artistic approaches into handwriting instruction serves to provide a superior alternative to solely using traditional methods. This is largely due to the fact that the artistic approach engages multiple sensory pathways, which fosters the construction of meaning in an active manner.

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