In this course, you will learn that the effectiveness of visuals depend on their purpose. Certain images are more effective when it comes to informing people about a subject, others are more effective at conveying certain emotions, and yet others are better for educational purposes. You may want to create different visuals for directing attention in learners, awakening their prior knowledge, minimizing memory load, building mental models, transfer of learning and to motivate learners (Clark & Lyons, 2011). Depending on the purpose of the visual, you may therefore create a different type of visual.
Whenever you see, use, or create a visual, it is important to ask yourself what the purpose is of the visual. For instructional visuals, it is also important to ask yourself whether the visual aligns with your instructional goals and lesson content or whether you are simply using the visual for decorative purposes. According to Clark and Lyons (2011), the excessive use of decorative graphics can sometimes inhibit learning rather than enhance it. These scholars therefore discourage overusing decorative visuals for learning purposes. Throughout this course you will learn how to effectively use and create different visuals for varying purposes.
Description
After reviewing this lesson and reading Peter Felten’s article, please answer the following questions:
Submit Your Assignment
At the end of this lesson you will submit your completed assignment. Assignment 1 should be prepared using Microsoft Word. At the top of your document you should have the lesson name, and underneath that should be your name, email address, and the date. When you save the document as a file on your computer, make sure the file is named “Assignment1”. After you have saved your file, go to the student interface and submit your assignment for grading. Click here if you need additional information regarding submission of your assignment.
Grading Criteria
Points: 15