Hi William - Thanks for your post to the forum. You are doing an excellent job of engaging your visual and tactile learners! Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
I teach general education courses. Occasionally the textbook publisher makes available a CD/DVD containing "Instructor materials." This often contains PowerPoint presentations supporting the text. I have found that the quality of these materials vary a lot and no instructor should use them automatically. Most need updating and are highly static in their visual content. Worse, whole paragraphs are lifted from the text without any illustrations. As the result, I usually edit them and add graphic content. This is important because I teach at an art school. Most students are visually or tactilely inclined here. Therefore lots of visual content is important. I draw, using multiple white boards to provide a visual connection of course content; I usually try to show a video every class session, breaking up lectures. each course has a final project that is required. In the past this has been a traditional research paper. I have opened up the requirements to encourage students to use skills from their major course areas in completing the project. That really encourages student engagement.
I like using images in a 'slideshow' type of situation where I have the students identify and attach current class topics to what they are seeing. This is a great tool to combine everyday concepts and things to what they are to be learning.
Visual learners need to see to fully understand. Pictures, powerpoint slides, short educational videos, and drawings on the white board see to do the trick. Being that I work at an automotive school I often have the real parts that we talk about to pass around.The smaller ones that is.
Hey Steve- Nothing wrong with old stuff that works!! Thanks for sharing with us all. Best wishes- Susan
I agree that drawings and other illustrations keep visual learners engaged and interested in the lectures and the material.
As a graphics instructor I use a traditional 4 step method. I lecture at the board briefly explaining the problem, the skills needed to solve the problem, the new skills we are going to practice. Then I turn on the overhead computer and do the project in my own way showing the steps. Then I go thru the project with the students in small groups or one on one if possible. Then the students do their own images and and/or compositions.
I call it the I do, we do, you do method. Old school but it works. I also have the copy, make it your own method.
HI Joe- You have a lot of good things going on in your classroom - excellent! Susan
HI Katrina- Thanks for your post to the forum. You are using some good ideas to incorporate things that students will be encountering in the workplace. Best wishes- Susan
Powerpoints are an effective tool as well as deomonstartive lessons
The more you can show a visual learner the more they can connect to the lesson that you are presenting to them. This type of learner also likes to use a pass around and looks to see how it works in a classroom.
As a graphic design and visual art instructor, I bring in actual design examples to analyze and discuss with the students. In addition, projected images, websites, and diagramed visuals such as the color wheel make it easier for the students to understand and apply. My visual examples are somewhat small, so I usually pass them around the room and allow students to keep them at their tables as they work on their visual design problems.
I like to use real life examples that use differnt sorts of print/electronic media such as maps, flyers, or showing a couple of websites.
Some of the strategies I use are student presentations, lectures, and demonstrations, depending on the student preference. Also, while delivering my own presentation, I incorporate as many methods as possible, such as; lecture, visual, demonstration and self reflection. I also use small group discussion when discussing clinical scenarios.
I use power point presentations so definitions are on the screen as I also read through them. I find bringing in visual aids from real life examples and showing them on the screen are helpful as well
I use a variety of strategies, including PowerPoints, handouts, website links, demonstrations, and simulations or role plays.
Hi Anthony - I think that your demonstrating how to complete a full drawing from start to finish is very important. I'm sure that you get students with diverse skill levels. Those who are very skilled will have no problem being able to replicate the finished product, but beginners would be overwhelmed by that. Best wishes- Susan
I am a drawing instuctor in a Game design program, so most of my students are visual learners. I mostly use power point presentation showing them examples of concept art from games currently on the market. I always have some sort of visual illlustration demonstrating the techniques we are learn be it a 1 point perspective or a character design. I also try tgo show them each step in the process of creating a drawing, so they can see it in progress and not just the final work.
Hi Nathan - Excellent question! In elementary school using objects to represent numbers is common. In higher education not so. What sort of programs are your studentsin? Could you work with the technical faculty (like electronics or CAD etc.) to come up with math related scenarios that relate directly to their program? Best wishes- Susan
Great question. I'm actually curious what some good strategies are for teaching Math to visual learners? I tend to just show problems on the board and have students work on problems as well, but maybe there is a way to show math more visually?
