The New Age of Learning: How Can We Use Comic Books in Education?

Comics as a teaching tool

According to some recent studies, comics can help students in memorizing more facts if used along with other media during the work in class. They improve memory retention because thy use not only text but also visuals. Words and images combined in specific sequences help learners to create a more vivid memory map. Plus, comics are more much more entertaining than just boring textbooks, although the latter have started adopting some aspects of comics too. Why? Obviously, because that contributes to the efficiency. So let’s delve into their essence, and find out how they can be used in current academic system.

Why do they work?

Before you make up your mind on whether they are good or bad for learning, you must understand why these funny books are good in facilitating learning capacity. First, they create a fun, safe and familiar environment. The dual-coding theory states that if the information is presented both visually and verbally, there is a high chance that learning will be more effective. Psychologists concede that educators must use both these types of media in teaching learners. In this regard, comics become a perfect dual-coding medium. Texts and pictures are synchronized to produce a result that is, overall, more coherent and faster to realize, than a combination of both. Skilled writers and artists can create materials that are understandable, clear and engaging. Plus, students know how to go about this form of media, and altogether that makes comic books much more attractive to them compared to the boring textbooks.

The Comics’ Three E’s:

Engagement

They have a way of imparting wisdom to an audience as a result of their creative, engaging methods of story narration as well as the juxtaposed words and images. Learners can actively make meanings using the combination of the words and images and how they are organized into a story.

Efficiency

They have a format that carries a huge amount of information over a shorter period. It is particularly helpful for students who have issues in math, sciences and other subjects. It is a great way to learn about resume prime reviews.

Effectiveness

The processing of pictures and texts together causes a valid sharing of information and feedback. Research has indicated that people process texts and pictures in various sections of the mind. The dual-coding theory of cognition shows that this information is processed in various parts of the brain. These experiments have indicated that pairing images and texts increases overall memory retention allowing students to learn better and faster.

Like with all educational tools, there are risks. With the stories that are taught in class, there is also the potential of arguing that the stories are inappropriate for specific age groups. There are controversial topics in school that can be addressed with comics. They can pick up on what needs to be learned. It may be a new concept, but it is one that has the potential of improving the education sector in all nations.