The Setting 

See also The Observation on left

This study is born of simplicity; a man learning to type. Something both easy to define and observe. Yet the simplicity of the task is belied by the nature of the question--how does the recalcitrant learner teach himself to type using an online program where the only facilitator is himself, and motivation to complete must be internal?

Peter was given an overview of the study so that he would know what was expected of him and how to go about the business of teaching himself using an online program, something which he had never done.  -See also Participant Overview on left for a copy of the actual overview.

Today, learning to type is second nature. It is taught in grade school. However, many people, especially those of previous generations, or whose careers do not require typing as a skill, still use a two-fingered hunt and peck method that leads to frustration and lost productivity. While the course itself is open to anyone with Internet access, the goal of this study is to take just one person and observe them as they learn to type. More specifically, the goal for the learner is to be able to locate their hands on the "home row" of keys (see Figure 1 below), to navigate the alphabet keys, space bar, and basic punctuation, and to do so by the end of one week at the speed of at least a beginning touch typist (between 10-25 words per minute). 

Peter does have the option to extend his learning beyond one week, however due to the nature of the study, data will only be gathered for a seven day period. He has selected an Internet course titled, Peter's Online Typing Course  (see left Peter's Online Typing Course for details) and has been provided another website, TypingTest.com, (see left Typing Test for details) to test his typing abilities both pre and post learning experience.