The aim of this systematic knowledge overview is to shed light on what research says about how different writing modalities affect the initial reading and writing development. The background for the chosen area of challenge is the vague formulation in the current curriculum regarding what extent students should develop within different writing modalities. More specifically, our aim is to find out what importance handwriting has within this field. 

By reading, analysing and discussing different studies systematically, we have collected material from ten separate research results. These studies have been carried out both nationally and internationally and are for the most part quantitative and interventional.

The research we have accessed shows that handwriting has a confirmed positive effect on some areas of the initial reading and writing development. These include letter knowledge as well as text length, writing fluency and writing speed. However, these results are not wholly unchallenged.

Our conclusion is that the two writing modalities concerning our subject matter should not be seen as being opposite to one another. Although, initial intensified handwriting could lead to students becoming more effective writers further on, both when writing by hand and typing/keyboarding. Explicit experiences within both modalities are needed, however.