Media and Materials

Many of the media and materials discussed in this chapter are so common that instructors are inclined to underestimate their instructional value, Materials don't have to be digital or expensive to be useful. Small can indeed be beautiful, and inexpensive can be effective! In fact, in some situations-for instance, isolated, rural areas; teaching loca tions that lack electricity, programs or schools with a low budget these simpler materials may be the only media that make sense to use (Figure 4.1). In addition, many computer software packages include manipulatives and workbooks for students to use as part of their learning experience. The focus in this chapter is on media and materials; the discussion includes real objects, models, printed materials, free and inexpensive materials, field trips, and the devices used to display visuals (chalkboards, multipurpose boards, copy boards, flip charts, and more).

MANIPULATIVES

Real objects such as coins, tools, artifacts, plants, and animals are some of the most accessible, intriguing, and involving materials in educational use (Figure 4.2). They are known as manipulatives because students may handle and inspect them.

FIELD TRIPS

The field trip, an excursion outside the classroom to study real processes, people, and objects, often grows out of students' need for firsthand experiences. It makes it possible for students to encounter phenomena that cannot be brought into the classroom for observation and study.

Examples of field trips include a trip of a few minutes into the schoolyard to observe a tree, a trek across the street to see construction work, or a longer trip of sev eral days to tour historical locations. Popular field trip sites include zoos, museums, public buildings, and parks. Dale's Cone of Experience (see Chapter 1) places field trips toward the middle of the cone because, al though the experience is "real," students typically are only seeing and hearing the phenomena, not directly manipulating them.

PRINTED MATERIALS

Printed materials include textbooks, fiction and non fiction books, booklets, pamphlets, study guides, manuals, and worksheets, as well as word processed documents prepared by students and teachers. Text books have long been the foundation of classroom instruction. The other forms of media discussed in this book are frequently used in conjunction with and as supplements to printed materials.

FREE AND INEXPENSIVE MATERIALS

With the ever-increasing costs of instructional materi als, teachers and trainers should be aware of the vari ety of materials they may obtain for classroom use at little or no cost (Figure 4.10). These free and inex pensive materials can supplement instruction in many subjects; they can be the main source of instruction on certain topics. For example, many videotapes are avail able for loan without a rental fee; the only expense is the return postage. By definition, any material that you can borrow or acquire permanently for instruc tional purposes without a significant cost, usually less than a couple of dollars, can be referred to as free or inexpensive.

DISPLAY SURFACES

If you are going to use visuals such as photographs, drawings, charts, graphs, or posters, you need a way to display them. Visuals may be displayed in the classroom in a variety of ways, ranging from simply holding up a single visual in your hand to constructing elaborate ex hibits for permanent display. Classroom surfaces com monly used for display of visuals include chalkboards, multipurpose boards, copy boards, pegboards, bulletin. boards, cloth boards, and magnetic boards. Flip charts and exhibits, a display format incorporating a variety of materials such as real objects and models along with visuals, are also common. How you display your visuals will depend on a number of factors, including the nature of your audience, the nature of your visuals, the instruc tional setting, and, of course, the availability of the vari ous display surfaces.

Chalkboards

The most common display surface in the classroom is, of course, the chalkboard (Figure 4.11). Once called blackboards, they now come in a variety of colors, as does chalk. Although the chalkboard is most commonly used to support verbal communication, you can use it as a surface on which to draw visuals (or pictures can be fastened to the molding above the chalk board, taped to the board with masking tape, or placed in the chalk tray) to help illustrate instructional units. You may draw graphics, such as sketches and di agrams or charts and graphs, on the chalkboard for display to the class.

Multipurpose Boards

Some classrooms are equipped with multipurpose boards instead of chalkboards. These are also called whiteboards or marker boards. As the name implies, you can use them for more than one purpose. Their smooth, white plastic surface requires a special erasable marker rather than chalk. Do not use permanent felt-tip markers. These markers may permanently damage the surface.

Copy Boards

A high-tech variation of the multipurpose board is the copy board, or electronic whiteboard. This device makes reduced-size paper copies of what is written on the board. It looks like a smaller multipurpose board but may contain multiple screens or frames that can be scrolled forward and backward. You can prepare content beforehand on any or all of the screens. During your presentation you can reveal the frames one at a time, and add new information as desired. You can move the writing surface forward or backward to the desired frame quickly and easily. You can write on the copy board using any erasable marker. If you make a mistake, erase your error as you would on any multipurpose board.

Pegboards

Another popular display surface is the pegboard. It is particularly useful for displaying heavy objects, three-di mensional materials, and visuals.

Pegboards are made of tempered Masonite with %-inch holes drilled 1 inch apart. Pegboard material is usually - inch thick and comes in 4-by-8-foot sheets, which can be cut to any size. You can insert special metal hooks and holders into the pegboard to hold books, papers, and other objects.

Bulletin-board

The term bulletin board implies a surface on which bulletins brief news announcements of urgent interest are posted for public notice. This was the original purpose of bulletin boards, but it does not describe the variety of uses of these display spaces today. A bulletin board is a surface of variable size and shape made of a ma terial that holds pins, thumbtacks, and other sharp fas teners without damage to the board (Figure 4.14). In practice, bulletin board displays tend to serve three broad purposes: decorative, motivational, or instructional.

Cloth Boards

Cloth boards are constructed of cloth stretched over a sturdy backing material such as plywood, Masonite, or heavy cardboard. The cloth used for the board may be of various types, including flannel, felt, or hook-and-loop material.

Pieces of flannel stick together when gentle pressure is applied. You can draw with felt-tip markers on visuals cut from flannel and put them on a flannel board. You can back still pictures and graphics with pieces of flannel. Coarse sandpaper also works to attach visuals to at cloth board. Pipe cleaners, available in a variety of colors, and fuzzy yarns stick to the flannel and you can use them for drawing lines and letters. If adhesion is less than desired, slant the board slightly back at the top to prevent materials from slipping.

Magnetic Boards

Magnetic boards serve much the same purpose as cloth boards. Visuals are backed with magnets and then placed on the metal surface of the board. Magnetic boards, magnets, and flexible strips of magnetic materials for use in backing are available commercially. Plastic let tering with magnetic backing is available from teacher supply stores and can be used for captioning visuals.

Flip Charts

A flip chart is a pad of large paper fastened together at the top and mounted to an easel. The individual sheets cach hold a limited verbal/visual message and usually are arranged for sequential presentation to a small group. You may write messages extemporaneously while talking or you can prepare them in advance to be re vealed one at a time. You can use poster makers, such as the Poster Printer, to produce flip chart pages. Commercially produced materials are also avail able in this format, they are especially prevalent in read ing and science instruction and military training. Prepared visual sequences are especially useful for in struction involving sequential steps in a process. The di agrams or words can serve as cues, reminding you of the next point in your presentation.

The most common use of flip charts, though, is for the extemporaneous drawing of key illustrations and key words to supplement a standup presentation. The flip chart is an extremely versatile, convenient, and inexpen sive media format. It requires no electrical power, has no moving parts to wear out, can be used in a range of lighting conditions, is portable, and requires only a marking pen as peripheral equipment.

Exhibits

Exhibits are collections of various objects and visuals designed to form an integrated whole for instructional purposes. Any of the visuals discussed in this chapter, as well as models and real objects, can be included in an exhibit, and any of the display surfaces discussed can contribute to an exhibit. Exhibits can gen erally be used for the same instructional purposes and in the same ways as their individual components are used.

Displays. 

A display is an array of objects, visuals, and printed materials (e.g., labels and descriptions). Most displays include descriptive information about the objects or visuals shown. Instructional displays are used in the classroom (Figure 4.22), in museums, and in many other settings. Student assembly of a display can be a motivating learning experience. It can foster retention of subject matter and sharpen visual skills.

Dioramas. 

Dioramas are static displays consisting of a three-dimensional foreground and a flat back ground to create a realistic scene. The foreground is usually a landscape of some sort with models of people, animals, vehicles, equipment, or buildings. The natura listic background may be a photograph, drawing, or painting. The diorama is usually contained within a box, with the sides of the box providing a backdrop. The rear corners or the entire back may be rounded to provide an illusion of depth, and lights can be added for a special effect.