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Asked by rute-silva to Anna, Catriona, Daniel, Katherine, Michael on 16 Apr 2015.
Question: Are displays useful or not so much when it comes to learning? Are they learning aids or visual clutter? Are there rules to optimize their effect?
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Catriona Morrison answered on 16 Apr 2015:
If by displays you mean visual aids/models then very much so. The more tools that are used the better as different students will engage with information in different ways, and what we know as psychologists is that the more diverse the teaching material, the more students will be able to get a handle on difficult concepts.
There aren’t any rules as such but teaching is all about trying things out and seeing what works for your own students.
Comments
Lia - WellcomeTrust commented on :
There is some interesting research on enriched environments also I believe on the benefits vs the problems of busy displays in classrooms. One of our scientists I am sure will be able to elaborate and provide some useful links to the research. If not we will find someone who can – watch this space.
stephen100 commented on :
Believing in the benefits is different to evidence.
Are displays like signs: if you have too many nobody reads any of them?
c_hendrick commented on :
The scourge of motivational posters and the problem with pop psychology in the classroom.
http://chronotopeblog.com/2015/02/15/the-scourge-of-motivational-posters-and-the-problem-with-pop-psychology-in-the-classroom/
jaymo commented on :
I would love to find out if there is any evidence on this. I don’t believe that having lots of learning displays up helps learning at all, but my head teacher disagrees! This is totally anecdotal, of course, but I once taught a lesson on converting units to a class during the summer term. All year, a display had been on the wall with the conversion facts (1m = 100cm, etc). It was under the interactive whiteboard, and so directly in their line of vision. But almost none of them knew any of the facts! This underlined for me the fact that children don’t learn by osmosis. I reckon children would learn as well in a classroom with blank walls, although I am in favour of displays that celebrate children’s work and those that are immediately relevant to the learning taking place.