57 per cent of those who used text-based web applications such as blogs, said they generally enjoyed writing compared to 40 per cent who did not.
Pupils who write online are more likely to write short stories, letters, song lyrics or a diary, the research revealed.
Even social websites such as Facebook, Twitter and Bebo are causing alarming changes in the brains of young users too, claimed neuroscientist Susan Greenfield. “My fear is that these technologies are infantilising the brain into the state of small children who are attracted by buzzing noises and bright lights, who have a small attention span and who live for the moment.
"A research by The National Literacy Trust on 3,001 children from England and Scotland showed that schoolchildren who blog or own social networking profiles on Facebook have higher literacy levels and greater confidence in writing."