Almost 80 per cent of children who took part in a European study spoke of discomfort, cramp or pain when writing. The research by German- based STABILO, which provides ergonomic writing instruments, was conducted among 637 pupils and students aged from 10 to 29 in Germany, France and Britain. The National Handwriting Association says pupils have to be able to write quickly “to give full range to their ideas”. Those who cannot manage that because they are in discomfort are likely to get lower grades.
