Once my daughter started using word prediction, her aptness to use higher-level vocabulary surprised me. As an assistive technology specialist, I’ve known that word prediction helps improve typing speed by reducing the number of keystrokes and that it assists with spelling by offering word completion choices. Yet, I didn’t fully realize the impact that supported spelling can have on a person’s confidence and the willingness to use richer vocabulary words.
My daughter is a phonetic speller. This is a problem since there are so many spelling anomalies in the English language. Even as a college student today, spelling still challenges her. (Apparently, this runs in my family. I’ve now heard stories that my aunt and grandfather had “horrible spelling.”)
During my daughter’s elementary school years, I supported her by supplying a resource guide and encouraged her to utilize an alphabetical notebook. The alphabetical notebook had tabs for each letter of the alphabet. She would write down troublesome spelling words and reference the notebook while writing. This strategy was helpful, but I wished that she could eventually write freely without stopping to reference a resource.
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One year, I asked my daughter’s teacher to offer her strategies and support in this academic skill. Consequently, the well-meaning teacher either unconsciously or consciously graded her writing assignments with increased criticism. Looking back, my daughter’s language art grade was lower that year than previous or subsequent years. The elevated scrutiny of her spelling and writing composition resulted in a loss of confidence. Henceforth, she began to stick to simple words and phrases to express her ideas.
During my daughter’s middle school years, our family moved to another state. The new school district had a one-to-one technology initiative. Each middle school student was issued an iPad. Thence, my daughter began typing her writing assignments in a word processing app on the iPad. The onscreen keyboard had built-in word prediction. Incidentally, she discovered that the word prediction feature improved her spelling. Slowly, she began to attempt to type grade level (or higher) vocabulary words.
The word prediction tool allowed her to take risks in typing vocabulary words that she knew and understood but lacked confidence in spelling. Also, using a tablet to write allowed easy access to online dictionaries to confirm her word choices. With success in her attempts, my daughter continued to grow in her confidence, reach for richer vocabulary, and greatly improve her writing composition. In my heart, I believe word prediction made a difference in my daughter’s marked improvement in writing.
Read more about the technology tools that accommodate writing conventions.
- Capitalization autocorrect and checkers
- Spelling and grammer autocorrect and checkers
- Word prediction – Free on Windows computers
- Speech recognition
- Text-to-speech to hear words spoken to listen for errors
- Peer review using a comment feature or suggested edits feature
- Digital dictionary
Also, discover the technology tools that assist with vocabulary comprehension:
- Picture dictionary
- Web search tool for images and information
- Digital dictionary
- Syllables and parts of speech feature
- Translation tool
- Pronunciation tool