Examining the Effectiveness of My Scrivener on Handwriting Legibility - Full Text View

Sponsored by:	Shenandoah University
Information provided by:	Shenandoah University
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:	NCT00693303

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the changes in handwriting performance in elementary aged children who receive handwriting training which includes use of the My Scrivener stylus. Training on the My Scrivener stylus provides additional feedback to the children which is hypothesized to produce significant improvement.

Condition	Intervention
Children	Behavioral: Training on My Scrivenor

U.S. FDA Resources

Study Type:	Interventional
Study Design:	Treatment, Open Label, Uncontrolled, Single Group Assignment
Official Title:	Examining the Effectiveness of My Scrivener on Handwriting Legibility

Further study details as provided by Shenandoah University:

Primary Outcome Measures:

Legibility scores on the Evaluation Tool of Children's Handwriting [ Time Frame: June 2008 and August 2008 ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]

Estimated Enrollment:	20
Study Start Date:	June 2008
Estimated Study Completion Date:	August 2008
Estimated Primary Completion Date:	August 2008 (Final data collection date for primary outcome measure)

Arms	Assigned Interventions
1: Experimental Arm 1 children will receive My Scrivenor training	Behavioral: Training on My Scrivenor Subjects will receive 20 minutes twice per week on the My Scrivenor

Detailed Description:

Once parental consent has given, students will meet individually with the PI or a trained occupational therapy graduate student in a private space at the Boys and Girls Club of the Northern Shenandoah Valley for a pre-test evaluation session. The evaluation will consist of the following:

Evaluation Tool of Children's Handwriting (ETCH; Amundson, 1995). This is a criterion-referenced tool measuring a child's legibility and speed in grades one through six. This measure is able to evaluate both manuscript and cursive handwriting; however, only the manuscript portion will be used as that will be the focus of the club's training. The ETCH asks the child to write letters and words in lower-case and upper-case, write numerals, perform near point and far point copying, write to dictation, and compose original sentences. Total time for the evaluation is 15-20 minutes.
Brief Assessment of Motor Function (BAMF: Parks, Cintas, Chaffin, & Gerber, 2007). This is a criterion referenced tool that can identify gross, fine, and oral motor performance in as little as 10 minutes. For this particular study, only the Fine Motor Scale of the BAMF will be used. Data from this tool will be used to categorize subjects for between group comparisons.
The Developmental Test of Visual Motor Integration (VMI: Beery, 1998). This gold-standard tool measures a child's visual motor performance by asking them to copy geometric shapes ranging from the very simple to the very complex. Data from this tool will be used to categorize subjects for between group comparisons.

Once all children have been evaluated, twice weekly Handwriting Camp sessions will be held. During these small group sessions lasting approximately 30 minutes each, 4 children at a time will receive instruction from the Handwriting Without Tears Curriculum from either the PI or trained OT graduate students and 20 minutes of supervised practice time on the My Scrivener equipment to reinforce the letter writing instruction for that day.

The Handwriting Camp sessions will last for approximately 8 weeks.

At the conclusion of the camp, the pre-tests will be re-administered as well as an open-ended question interview will be conducted on how well the child enjoyed using the device.

Eligibility

Ages Eligible for Study:	5 Years to 13 Years
Genders Eligible for Study:	Both
Accepts Healthy Volunteers:	Yes

Criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

The subjects will be any child enrolled in the summer program at the Boys and Girls Club of the Northern Shenandoah Valley entering grades 1 to 6 in Fall 2008 whose parents give consent.

Exclusion Criteria:

None

Contacts and Locations

Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00693303

Locations

United States, Virginia
Boys and Girls Club of the Northern Shenandoah Valley	Recruiting
Winchester, Virginia, United States, 22601
Contact: Martha Griffin 540-723-6665
Principal Investigator: Deborah Marr

Sponsors and Collaborators

Shenandoah University

Investigators

Principal Investigator:

Deborah Marr, ScD

Shenandoah University

More Information

Responsible Party:	Shenandoah University ( Deborah Marr )
Study ID Numbers:	08-1125, NIDRR #H133S070082
Study First Received:	June 5, 2008
Last Updated:	June 5, 2008
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:	NCT00693303
Health Authority:	United States: Institutional Review Board

Keywords provided by Shenandoah University:

single subject
quantitative

ClinicalTrials.gov processed this record on January 16, 2009