Problems faced by left-handed students in technology subjects

Having been out on School Placement 3 over the past number of weeks I can really see
the benefits and value of school placement. From being out on placement I have
learned things that I never would have thought of had I not been out getting this
experience. Something which struck me while on placement was students who are left-
handed and how this has impacted them in the practical subjects. I can see how these
students are very easily forgotten in a class. Having noticed this during my school
placement I have been prompted to critically reflect on the problems faced by left-
handed students in the technology subjects.

A 2019 study revealed that 7.3% of the Irish population use their left hand as their
dominant hand (de Kovel , Carrión-Castillo, & Francks, 2019). While being left-handed is
not a disability it can cause students some difficulties, this is mainly due to the fact, that
over 90% of people are right-handed and therefor a lot of things are designed with this
in mind. Left-handers are a neglected group because the hand they use for everyday
acts is different from what the majority uses (Coren, 1992). From teaching both graphics
and wood technology on placement I have noticed that there are challenges left-handed
students face in these technology subjects. In these classes students may struggle due
to the design of tools and equipment as most are designed for a right-handed person.
During a number of practical’s in wood technology I noticed a few students struggling
with to complete a task, I noticed that students struggled with positioning workpieces in
a way that allows them to use their dominant hand to work on them. Students were
following my demonstrations correctly but were getting confused as this didn’t work the
same for them as my dominant hand is my right. Students who had little to no
experience of woodwork seemed to be the students who struggled the most. I also
noticed that left-handed students hand some difficulties with technical drawing
equipment as the equipment was designed to be supported by a right-handed person.
The problems left-handed students face in the technical classroom is something which is
which has really struck me while on placement and I believe that this is something I
need to plan for in future classes.
On reflection of the problems left-handed students face in the technical classroom and
completing some research I believe is it highly important for school to have equipment
which is designed for left-handed students. Left-handed drawing equipment is available,
and I think should be available for students who require it. I have learned from my
placement that I need to keep my demonstrations differentiated so that both left and
right-handed students follow and will be able to repeat the task. Talking about using
tools in a way that suit students as well as using terms such as dominant hand instead of
left and right can greatly help students who are left-handed. “Members of the teacher's
panel agree educators must address left-handed students in reference to right-handed
classroom elements” (Longo-Bartel, 2000). We need to communicate in a way that will
help all students and not leave left-handed students feeling confused.

References
Coren, S. (1992). The Left-Hander Syndrome: The Causes and Consequences of Left-
Handedness. New York : Maxwell Macmillan International .
de Kovel , C. G., Carrión-Castillo, A., & Francks, C. (2019). A large-scale population study
of early life factors influencing left-handedness. Retrieved from National Center
for Biotechnology Information:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6345846/
Longo-Bartel, M. J. (2000). LEFT-HANDED TEACHING TECHNIQUES FOR THE RIGHT-
HANDED. Theses Digitization Project.