Frances Turiano

Teaching with Symbols

Visual Symbolsare representations

of direct reality, which comes in the form of signs and

symbols.

Visual symbols include:

drawings, cartoon, strip drawings, diagrams, formulas, charts, graphics, maps, globes.

Drawings

A drawing may not be the real thing but better to have a concrete visual aid than nothing. To avoid confusion, it is good that our drawing correctly represents the real thing.

One essential skill that the teacher should posses is drawing.

Drawings and sketches• these are crude and

simple lines, which are effective in showing what needs to be shown with sufficient clarity, to make the meaning vivid to the learners or students.

• a very effective way in explaining and showing ideas and concepts

Example:

Sketching

Cartoons

Another useful visual symbol that can bring novelty to our teaching is the cartoon. A first rate cartoon tells its story tells a story metaphorically. The perfect cartoon needs no caption. The less the artist depends on words, the more effective the symbolism. The symbolism conveys the messages.

Example:This cartoon is critical of the so-called carpetbaggers, government agents and others from the North who often took advantage of the South after the American Civil War ended in 1865

CartoonsCartoons- tell stories metaphorically through

pictures, which need no caption. Symbolism conveys message, less words more symbolism the better. The cartoon presents a certain issue or concern which could be either for or against it.• It is a pictorial representation or

caricature of a person, idea, situation or issue that is designed to influence public opinion.

• They must be presented in a challenging manner

Suggestions for the use of cartoons

• Appropriateness to the experience level- the age and the experience or maturity of the target learners must be taken into consideration

• Simplicity- contains only the essential features. The cartoon must not contain so many details.

• Brevity of captions if ever but they may not be given any. Short and direct captions are used when necessary.

• Use of clear symbols. Use symbols that are conventional, like; the dove to mean peace; the owl to mean wisdom or education; the coffin to mean death; the turtle to mean slow or sluggishness and others

• Adequateness of size. The cartoon should be big enough to be seen and appreciated

Posteris a combination of bold designs and color primarily intended to catch attention on a significant fact, idea or message. Simply stated, a poster is a picture with appropriate caption.

Characteristics of a good poster

• It must be bold and simple but dramatizes features• It must be appropriate to the grade level and to the

subjects and purpose or purposes• It must have only limited text, few words are

generally used and key words are made to standout by means of type size or position.

• It must be attractive, pleasing to the eyes.• Design and color must be given consideration.• It must have the elements of dynamism and shock

Strip Drawings

These are commonly called comics or comic strip. Dale(1969) asserts that a more accurate term is strip drawings. Make use of strips that are educational and entertaining at the same time.

Example:

Where to use drawing as an instruction?These can serve as a motivation and starter of your lesson. It can also be given as an activity for students to express insights gained at the conclusion of a lesson.Sources of drawingYou can obtain strip drawings from newspapers, magazines and books.

Diagrams

It is “any line drawing that shows arrangement and relations as a part to the whole, relative values, origins and developments, chronological fluctuations, distribution, etc”.(Dale, 1969)

Example:

Types of diagrams:

Affinity Diagram – used to cluster complex apparently unrelated data into natural and meaningful groups.

Example of Affinity Diagram:

Work environment

Supportive Management

Provide Adequate Equipment

Provide Clean & Cheerful Environment

Good Instruction

Provide Training

Rewards and Recognition

Quick and Appropriate Rewards

Give Recognition where Due

Opportunity for advancement

Adequate salary

Good Benefits

Organizational Philosophy

Communicate organizational Goals

Give Good, clear Directions

Double Goals

Focus on our mission

Remove red tape

Job Focus

Interesting work

Provide Challenging Experiences

Make work Meaningful

Give Responsibility

Effective Responsibility

Affinity diagram of Keeping Employees Motivated

Tree diagram- used to chart out, in increasing details, the various tasks that must be accomplished to complete a project or achieve a specific objective.

To create a work environment where

80-90% of employees are motivated

Improve work environment

Revise supervisory Program

Refurbish all admin. Teachers’ Offices

Improve system of rewards and Recognition

Improve and ensure opportunities for

advancement

Improve salary and benefits

Improve interpersonal environment

Fishbone diagram- it is also called the cause-and-effect diagram. It is most commonly used to analyze work-related problems.

Example of Fishbone Diagram:

Charts

It is diagrammatic representation of relationships among individuals within an organization. We can have a seven types of chart:

1. Time ChartIs a tabular time

chart that presents data in ordinal sequence.

Example of Time Chart:

2. Tree Or Stream ChartDepicts development,

growth and change by beginning with a single course (the trunk) which spread out into many branches; or by beginning with the many tributaries which then converge into a single channel.

Example of Tree Or Stream Chart:

3. Flow ChartIs a visual way of

charting or showing a process from beginning to end. It is a means of analyzing a process.

Example of Flow Chart:START

4. Organizational chartShows how one part of the

organization relates to other parts of the organization.

Example of Organizational Chart:

5. Comparison or Contrast Chart

Used to show similarities and differences between two things.

Example of Contrast Chart

Attributte 1 Name 1 Name 2

Attribute 2

Attribute 3

6. Pareto chartIs a type of bar chart,

prioritized in descending order of magnitude or importance from left to right. It shows at a glance which factors are occurring most.

Example of Pareto chart

Gannt chartIs an activity time

chart

Example of Gannt chart

Graphs

A graphic (such as a chart or diagram) depicting the relationship between two or more variables used, for instance, in visualizing scientific data.Graphs are diagrams (pictures) that can be used to display/compare collected data. They communicate "visually

There are several types of graph:

1. Circle or Pie Graph- recommended for

showing parts of the whole

Example of Pie Graph

food

shelter

water

2. Bar Graph-use in comparing the

magnitude of similar items at different ties or seeing relative sizes of the parts of a whole.

Example of Bar Graph

Enrolment of CTE from 2000-2010

3. Pictorial Graph - makes use of pictorial

symbol.

Example of Pictorial Graph :

4. Line Graph- A line chart or line

graph is a type of graph, which displays information as a series of data points connected by straight line segments

Example of Line Graph

5. Graphic Organizers- Visual representations of

knowledge, concepts, thoughts, or ideas. Graphic Organizers historically have been organized bits of data in easy-to-understand formats, such as charts, tables, and graphs.

Example of Graphic Organizers

Maps

A map is a representation of the surface of the earth or some parrt of it.

Kinds of Map

Physical Map-combines in a single

projection data like altitude, temperature, rainfall, presipitation, vegetation, and soil

Example of Physical Map

Relief Map- has three dimensional

representations and show contours the physical data of the earth or part of the earth

Example of Relief Map

Commercial or Economic Map-also called product or industrial map since they show land areas in relation to the economy.

Example of Economic MapRegions of the United States Geographers divide the United States into a number of regions that share common features. These regions are defined by similar natural features, such as terrain and climate, or by cultural factors, including shared economic or historical influences.

Political Map-gives detailed information about country, provinces, cities and towns, roads and highways. Oceans, rivers and lakes are the main features of most political maps.

Example of Political Map

Scale- shows how much is the actual earth’s surface is represented by a given measurement of a map.

Map Language

Example Of ScaleThe scale of a map defines the relationship between distance on the map and the corresponding distance on the earth

Symbols- usually a map has a legend that explains what each symbol means

Color

Geographic Grids- The grid lines are called

meridian and parallel.

Examle of Geographic Grids-

Understanding Maps, Graphs, and Charts

Read the titles and the subtitlesRead the key, and/or the legendRead the information shown along the side and the bottom of the graphs and charts and tables, if any.Determine your purpose of reading the map

Summing Up

Like a picture, a graph and all other visual symbols, are worth a thousand words. The proper use of the visual symbols will contribute to the optimum learning.Visual symbol come in many forms. For these visual symbols to be at your finger tips, you ought to be skilled in making them. The collection, preparation and use of these various visual symbols depend on the great extent on your own resourcefulness and creativity. If you used them skillfully, your classroom may turn into a beehive of busy students.

Postscript – A Lot of Visual Symbols at Your Disposal

You may not realize it. But with visual symbols alone, you have an array of teaching materials to choose from. If you decide and commit yourself to using one visual symbol for very lesson, you will keep your teaching crispy and fresh. You must learn how to draw, sketch make diagrams, graphs and charts. The computer can now do the graphs, the charts and some diagrams.

Thank you!!!!!