Monday, December 3, 2007
Using Rich Media Wisely
Chapter 30 of the text Using Rich Media Wisely, presents us with the age old caution against overkill. The chapter presented research on the value that media can add and enhance learning, if media tools are wisely chosen and are suited to meet the function of the learning objectives. As a high school AP English teacher, I made the connection between the text and rhetoric: effective communication has to be tailored to suit both audience and purpose, it must take into account audience background, expectations, prior knowledge. The communicator must then sort through her "tool bag" of sorts, to find and utilize strategies that are most appropriate and relevant for learners. So must media. Media tools that are mismatched or are only added to arouse, what the authors call "seductive details" actually depress learning. Conscientious media designers must be aware of the purpose of a media design tool or environment which they are creating, its ultimate purpose for the learner, and use appropriate rich media techniques (sound, graphics, animation) to match the learning objectives. Hence, knowledge of audience, and purpose is extremely important. I found it striking that the chapter notes that it is more important to use good design principles for low-knowledge learners than for high knowledge learners, just as it is more important for classroom teachers to use well planned lessons with explicit strategy instruction, modelling, guided and independent practice with students with lower skills than those without. For advanced students, these assist their learning; for students who are low skilled they can not survive without them.
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The chapter also makes note of “the paradox of rich media”, which is defined as the fact that current technology can deliver more information than learners have psychological capacity to assimilate. In addition to matching learning objectives, we must remember not to overload neural circuits, even with quality content. Since our auditory and visual pathways are discrete, it works to combine narration and visuals, whereas it might not work as well to combine text and visuals. Most of us have seen enough media to understand this intuitively; careful television advertisers clearly design with these principles in mind.
It also seems inescapable that psychology and education must go hand in hand. Understanding cognitive processes is the foundation for understanding how to design learning. Likewise, physiology has something to say about brain function, and sociologists regularly address the impact on social groups, especially children, of learning environments without access to sufficiently robust educational experiences.
Finally, it seems that all of these issues are much more prominent in diverse cultures where there are few norms that can be applied universally. Adults from one culture will have different educational histories than adults from another culture – how could we ever design learning on a one-size-fits-all basis? Using media, we need to design instruction so that it has an inherent flexibility. Only then can we reach the masses. Since most people are sensitive to media, using media variations is one possible way to communicate more effectively with diverse audiences. There is a graphic design book entitled: Designing Across Cultures (Ronnie Lipton, 2002) that looks at how we can visually repurpose messages for diverse ethnic groups. The underlying content (of the marketing message, in this case) is the same, but the appeal is made more effective by understanding the culturally mediated reactions of those who will see the piece. Needless to say, it is more complex than using stereotypes. It involves looking at cultural norms, themes, associations, and relationships, and handling those qualities with sensitivity and respect.
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