Writing is an invaluable tool for exercising our cognitive faculties. Extensive and diverse research has suggested links between writing and mental capacities in such domains as memory, 批判性思维, 创造力, 语言能力, 整体健康.

下面, you will find recommendations and explanations for how writing can be harnessed as a thinking tool both inside and outside the classroom.

写入和存储

Writing can help improve memory by creating deeper connections with subject material at the neurological level. 更具体地说, research has shown that writing by hand correlates more strongly with improved memory than writing with an electronic or mechanical device.

在Mangen和Verlay(2014)的研究中, it was demonstrated that the sensory-motor activity of writing by hand relays feedback to the brain that assists with information recall. 类似的, Mueller and Oppenheimer (2014) observed that taking notes by hand not only improved information recall, 还有概念学习(也就是, 理解事实背后的思想).

It may therefore be helpful to incorporate handwriting into writing tasks in order to improve memory.

写作与批判性思维

Writing facilitates a deeper engagement with subject material. Beyond the mere storage and retrieval of data, 批判性思维需要分析, 反射, 评价, 创造力, 仔细的推理.

In studies wherein experimental groups that were subjected to written treatments on tests were compared with control groups that were not, indications of 批判性思维 skills measured more highly in the former than the latter (Naber & Wyatt, 2014; Quitadamo & 库尔特,2007).

根据这些发现, we might incorporate more critical writing tasks into our teaching and learning regimens.

写作与创意

Creativity is a notoriously challenging construct to understand on all fronts. 不过, research suggests that writing has some measurable influence on 创造力 under some description.

Lotze等人. (2014) compared brain scans and performance on creative indices between “expert” writers and non-experts. Findings showed differential brain activity and performance between the two groups. 值得注意的是, those in the expert group routinely scored higher on creative indices than those in the non-expert group.

There remains a question of whether experts become creative through writing or if they write because they are creative, but these findings establish some connection between writing and 创造力. We might conjecture that the more creative activity we engage in, the more creative we become.

写作和口头表达能力

写作扩展了皇冠官网网站的词汇量. When we are challenged to express ideas more clearly or creatively, we push beyond the boundaries of our habitual jargon and explore novel ways of communicating.

A finding of particular interest in the above-mentioned research by Lotze等人. (2014) was that creative writers scored highly on the verbal 创造力 index (VCI); that is to say, their creative output featured a more robust use of language. Another study supports the idea that when learners are forced to explore and present complex topics, their vocabulary and manner of expression improves in concert with their growing knowledge (Wolsey, 2010).

These insights suggest that it is worthwhile to promote exploration during the writing process.

写作与健康

It has long been appreciated in medical fields that writing can be instrumental to positive 健康 outcomes.

很多人都说, 写作已被证明可以减轻压力, 帮助人们应对创伤, and even correlate with fewer experiences of adverse physiological symptoms (“Writing about emotions”, 2019). Writing may also help allay anxieties and improve mood (Watson, Fraser, & 半刚石,2019). Researchers prescribe methods of ‘expressive writing’ or journaling whereby one can work through complicated thoughts and thereby obtain some relief.

参考文献

Lotze, M.艾哈德,K.诺伊曼,n.n.埃克霍夫,S.B., & 兰格,R. (2014). Neural correlates of verbal 创造力: Differences in resting-state functional connectivity associated with expertise in creative writing. 人类神经科学前沿,8,1-8. doi: 10.3389 / fnhum.2014.00516

margen,., & Velay J. (2010). Digitizing literacy: Reflections on the haptics of writing. 在米.H. 德(Ed.),触觉进展(385-402). 伦敦:Intech开放 Limited.

Meuller P.A., & 奥本海默,D.M. (2014). The pen is mightier than the keyboard: Advantages of longhand over laptop note taking. 心理科学,25(6),1159-1168. doi: 10.117/0956797614524581

原来,我., & 怀亚特,T. H. (2014). The effect of reflective writing interventions on the 批判性思维 skills and dispositions of baccalaureate nursing students. 护士教育今日,34,67 -72.

Quitadamo,我.J., & 库尔茨,M.J. (2007). Learning to improve: Using writing to increase 批判性思维 performance in general education biology. 生命科学,6,140-154.

华生,我.R.弗雷泽,M。., & 半刚石,P. (2019). 写精神健康日志. 检索自http://www.罗彻斯特.edu/encyclopedia/content.aspx?版权id = 4552有些过火&ContentTypeID=1 Literacy Research and Instruction, 49(2), 194-208. doi: 10.1080/19388070902947360

沃尔西T.D. (2010). Complexity in student writing: The relationship between the task and vocabulary writing about emotions may ease stress and trauma. (2019). 检索自http://www.健康.哈佛大学.edu/健康beat/writing-about-emotions-may-ease-stress-and-trauma