Minnesota Handwriting Assessment

1. Minnesota Handwriting Assessment Jeffrey Arnold & Morgan Vaughan

2. Key Characteristics • Purpose • To quantify selected aspects of young student’s handwriting • Used to support or reject teachers subjective judgment of poor quality or slow rate handwriting in students • Age • Second semester 1st graders and 2nd graders

3. Frame of Reference most likely used guiding selection of this tool • Biomechanical • Developmental • PEO

4. Bottom-Up Approach

5. Test Development and Standardization • Test development • Literature reviews • Consultation with teachers • Standardization sample • n = 2,000 • 11 different states • Second semester 1st graders and 2nd graders

6. Domains • Rate – how fast the child writes • Legibility – how readable is a letter? • Form – does the letter make the shape it is supposed to with all lines connect, and all straight lines straight, and curved lines curved. • Alignment – does the letter rest within 1/16 above or below the base line? • Size – how big or small the letters are? • Spacing – how far apart or close together are the letters?

7. Psychometric Properties (Reliability) • Interrater • Pearson Correlation (.77-.88) • Intrarater • Fisher’s Z • Rate – 1.00 • Legibility - .96 • Form and spacing - .97 • Alignment and Size - .99 • Test-retest • Rate – 71% • Legibility 64% • Form – 75% • Alignment - 86% • Size – 82% • Spacing – 76%

8. Psychometric Properties – Validity • Content • Based on literature reviews and consultation with primary grade teachers • Construct • Manual does not explain but the explanation for content validity explains the construct as well • Criterion • Concurrent – measured using the Test of Visual Motor Skills • Strong association between first graders and students in special education with no OT, and for students receiving OT.

9. Measurement concerns • Scores are subjective because they are based on the facilitator’s judgment of the handwriting. • Only inclusion criteria: • Child must be in 1st or 2nd grade • No exclusion criteria

10. Test Length • 10-15 minutes for total administration and scoring. • 2.5 minutes to determine Rate • Child can finish sentence for legibility score.

11. Test Cost • Starter kit - $87.00 • Manual • 1 D’Nealian pad • 1 Manuscript pad • Each pad has 25 sheets • Clear 6 inch ruler • Print pads $25 – • package of 4 pads of 25 sheets for each D’Nealian and Manuscript print pads

12. Testing Procedures • Have student seated at a desk or table of appropriate height for their size • Lighting and ventilations should be appropriate and comfortable • Choose appropriate stimulus sheet (D’Nealian or Manuscript) depending on handwriting style practiced in the classroom. • Time the test for 2 ½ minutes to establish rate score. • If the student did not finish the sentence give additional time to finish the words to score the 5 quality categories

13. Test Items

14. Scoring

15. Scoring Interpretation • Like Peers Level is equivalent to scoring in the top 75% of the range of students. • Somewhat Below Peers Level is equivalent to the bottom 5%-25% of the range of students. • These students should be monitored to determine the underlying problem. • Well Below Peers Level is equivalent to the bottom 5% of the range of students. • These students should be sent for an evaluation to determine the underlying problem.

16. Test results

17. Area(s) of occupation addressed • Education • MHA is best administered in a school setting.

18. Reference Asher, I.E. (Ed.). (2014). Asher’s Occupational Therapy Assessment Tools (4th ed.). Bethesda,MD: AOTA Press. Reisman, J. (1999). Minnesota Handwriting Assessment. San Antonio, TX: Pearson.