For years, I’ve navigated the digital world with my own idiosyncratic approach to keyboard typing. Like many, I never formally learned how to type correctly, instead developing a self-taught method that, while functional, was far from optimal. As a content creator at learns.edu.vn, keyboards are my constant companion, my primary tool for bringing ideas to life. It dawned on me: if typing is so central to my work, shouldn’t I strive for mastery? This realization sparked my journey to Learn Keyboard Typing, specifically the touch typing method, often called “10-finger typing.” Renowned for its speed and ergonomic benefits, touch typing is the gold standard for professionals. Skeptical yet intrigued, I decided to dedicate my summer break to retraining my muscle memory and embracing a new way to interact with the keyboard.
My Self-Taught “8-Finger” Method
Growing up with German ISO keyboard layouts, I, like many others, fell into the trap of “hunt and peck” typing. My fingers rested on the ‘ASD’ and ‘KLÖ’ keys, a far cry from the home row position of touch typing. While I did utilize the shift keys with my little fingers, much like touch typists, my method was more of an “8-finger typing” hybrid. This approach had several drawbacks:
- Inefficient Finger Travel: My typing involved unnecessary hand movements and cross-hand motions, making it incompatible with ergonomic split keyboards. For instance, I typed ‘z’ with my left hand and awkwardly accessed ‘~’ by pressing ‘n’ with my left hand and ‘Option’ with my right.
- One-Handed Special Characters: I frequently typed special characters one-handed, relying on my right little finger for ‘Shift’ or thumb for ‘Option’. Simple characters like ‘/’ became cumbersome stretches from ‘7’ to ‘Shift’, and the same applied to ‘=’, ‘?’, and others.
- Frequent Keyboard Peeking: I constantly looked at the number row while typing numbers and often glanced at the keyboard even for letters, disrupting my flow and slowing me down.
Beyond these major inefficiencies, my typing was inconsistent, with variations in how I typed characters even within a single session. Despite being comfortable and reasonably fast with my self-taught method, I felt plateaued, unable to improve my speed or efficiency further. To truly unlock my typing potential, I knew a change was necessary.
Establishing a Baseline Typing Speed
Before embarking on my touch typing adventure, I needed a benchmark to measure my progress. It was crucial to determine if learning a new method would at least match my existing typing speed. For this, I turned to MonkeyType, a fantastic website I highly recommend. MonkeyType offers a user-friendly interface and comprehensive analytics to track your typing performance.
Key metrics I focused on were:
- WPM (Words Per Minute): The standard measure of typing speed, calculated as correctly typed words divided by 5.
- Raw WPM: Similar to WPM but includes incorrect characters, providing a more holistic speed measure.
- Accuracy (Acc): The percentage of correctly pressed keys, reflecting typing precision.
- Consistency: The variance in raw WPM across tests, indicating the stability of typing speed.
To ensure realistic results, I used the German vocabulary setting on MonkeyType (to account for umlauts) and included punctuation and numbers in my tests. Over 10 sixty-second tests on an Apple Magic Keyboard, my baseline average was: 76.98 WPM, 80.98 raw WPM, 94.5% accuracy, and 71.96% consistency. This baseline provided a clear target for improvement as I started learning touch typing.
Immersing Myself in Touch Typing Practice
With my baseline established, I began exploring free online resources to learn the proper touch typing technique. Initially, I tried Tipp10. While Tipp10 offered a structured curriculum, I found it somewhat lacking in engagement. However, it still proved useful for supplementary practice, and I revisited it later in my learning journey.
My primary learning tool became TypingClub. Among the various platforms I tested, TypingClub stood out with its highly engaging and comprehensive lesson plan. Over two months, I diligently worked through all of its lessons. Although I encountered minor layout quirks with German keyboards in the early stages, I found TypingClub to be about 90% ideal for learning touch typing. The platform effectively guides users on correct finger placement, starting with individual letters and progressively building up to words and sentences, gradually increasing speed and fluency.
Breaking free from my old typing habits took time and conscious effort. The first week was particularly challenging, reinforcing my decision to start learning during my vacation. I dedicated about 30 minutes daily to structured practice with TypingClub and consciously forced myself to touch type in all my daily computer interactions, even when it felt slow and frustrating.
While TypingClub was instrumental in the initial weeks, I returned to Tipp10 for its custom lesson feature. This allowed me to target specific weaknesses. For example, I used ChatGPT to generate text heavy in ‘z’ characters to specifically practice typing ‘z’ with my right hand, breaking my old left-hand habit. I also created lessons alternating between 5-digit numbers and German words to practice switching between the home row and number row without looking. Overcoming the urge to look at the number row was the most significant hurdle for me, and custom lessons proved invaluable in addressing this. Custom lessons can be tailored to individual needs and effectively bridge learning gaps. The custom practice texts I used are available here.
After approximately two weeks of focused practice, I felt confident enough to fully transition to touch typing at work. While it was tempting to discontinue structured lessons, I recognized the risk of developing new bad habits. Similarly, while gamified typing practice like Typeracer can be fun, I prioritized accuracy over speed in the initial learning phase. In MonkeyType, I switched to “Max Confidence Mode,” which encourages 100% accuracy by halting progress on errors, reinforcing precise typing habits. While the adage “practice makes perfect” holds true, it’s crucial to emphasize that correct practice, focused on proper technique and accuracy, is paramount, especially before increasing speed.
Beyond speed benchmarks, I discovered that the true benefit of touch typing lies in its ability to free up cognitive resources. By automating the physical act of typing, touch typing allows for greater focus on the content being written, rather than the mechanics of typing itself.
Later in my journey, I explored Keybr. Keybr also offers guided lessons and visual aids for finger placement, but I found it less beginner-friendly for learning touch typing from scratch compared to TypingClub. However, Keybr boasts an extensive collection of keyboard layouts, including German ISO, various US layouts, Dvorak, and Colemak, making it a valuable resource for those interested in alternative layouts. Otherwise, its features largely overlap with MonkeyType.
Re-evaluating My Typing Proficiency After Two Months
To track my progress, I conducted re-tests on MonkeyType every two weeks. As of this writing, two months have passed since my initial baseline test. In total, I estimate spending around 10 hours practicing with TypingClub, and approximately 3 hours each with Keybr, Tipp10, and MonkeyType. This totals about 19 hours of systematic practice over 61 days, averaging roughly 20 minutes per day, with a higher concentration of practice in the first 2-3 weeks.
My current average typing metrics are: 72 WPM (-5 WPM from baseline), 80 raw WPM (-1 WPM), 93% accuracy (-1.5%), and 68% consistency (-4%). The progress graph illustrates a gradual return to my previous typing speed, and I anticipate surpassing it in the coming weeks with continued practice. For context, one month prior, my average was 67 WPM with 88% accuracy and 63% consistency. While still slightly slower than my original typing speed, the everyday usability of my new touch typing technique at work arrived much sooner than these metrics alone suggest. These metrics primarily serve to confirm quantifiable progress.
Conclusion: The Rewarding Journey of Learning Keyboard Typing
I am genuinely impressed by the adaptability of muscle memory. Transitioning to a completely different typing style required only moderate effort over approximately two months. Overcoming the initial learning curve was quickly followed by noticeable improvements. Choosing the right learning tools significantly streamlines the process, making practice engaging and almost meditative. The most profound benefit of touch typing is the enhanced immersion in writing itself, shifting focus from the mechanics of typing to the content being created. Investing time in developing typing proficiency is undoubtedly worthwhile, especially for knowledge workers who rely heavily on keyboards. Will I explore Dvorak or US layouts next? Absolutely not…
…at least not yet.
And a word of caution: be aware of the mechanical keyboard rabbit hole that lurks around every corner of the online typing community.
Published by…
Basti Tee
Visit author page
