Handwriting in Lebanese bigraphic children: Standardization of the BHK Scale

Handwriting in Lebanese bigraphic children: Standardization of the BHK Scale

Educational systems in Lebanon are bilingual. They simultaneously impose two handwriting systems in Arabic and Latin. This historically driven situation could constitute a significant impact on the process and development of handwriting skills. Using an accurate and valid handwriting evaluation tool...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of occupational therapy, schools & early intervention Vol. 10; no. 4; pp. 420 - 435
Main Authors: Matta Abizeid, Carla, Tabsh Nakib, Amira, Younès Harb, Céleste, Ghantous Faddoul, Shereen, Albaret, Jean-Michel
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis 02-10-2017
Routledge
Subjects:
Bilingual Students
Bilinguism
Comparative Analysis
dysgraphia
Elementary School Students
Foreign Countries
Handwriting
handwriting assessment
Statistical Analysis
Test Norms
Test Reliability
Test Validity
transcultural study
Writing Skills
Writing Tests
Lebanon
France
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Educational systems in Lebanon are bilingual. They simultaneously impose two handwriting systems in Arabic and Latin. This historically driven situation could constitute a significant impact on the process and development of handwriting skills. Using an accurate and valid handwriting evaluation tool standardized for the Lebanese population is a necessity. This study presents normative and discriminant data for the Concise Evaluation Scale for Children's Handwriting (BHK) in Lebanese children, followed by a comparison to the BHK norms developed in France with unilingual children. The BHK was standardized with a sample of 763 Lebanese children from grades 1 to 5. Four trained raters were involved in the data collection. Data analysis addressed the development of norms, reliability, and pilot administration of discriminant validity. The BHK differentiates between Lebanese children with and without handwriting difficulties. In those without handwriting difficulties, the number of letters written in 5 minutes and writing proficiency increases throughout the first five school years and are gender related, favoring the girls. Lebanese children display better handwriting proficiency than French children, except for the handwriting quality that develops better among French children as of Grade 2. The BHK is a promising tool for the detection of dysgraphia and poor handwriting in Lebanese children.
ISSN:1941-1243
1941-1251
DOI:10.1080/19411243.2017.1335260