In search of instructional utility: A function-based approach to pictorial research

Abstract

In spite of considerable research on various aspects of pictures and their instructional uses, a clear conception of the instructional potential of pictures is missing. As a result, practitioners who deal directly with the instructional process are limited in their ability to use pictures most effectively and efficiently. The approach to picture research described here attempts to make research more relevant by suggesting the need to pay greater attention to the instructional role or function served by pictures. Potential functions must be described in terms of their contribution to instructional processes and procedures. Functions should also be applicable to a wide variety of objectives, strategies, and procedures. The relevance of this approach to both basic and applied pictorial research is also discussed.

Augmentation of information in educational objects: Effectiveness of arrows and pictures as information for actions in instructional objects

“…Therefore, it can be inferred that some degree of cue summation process occurred which facilitates faster comprehension and subsequent actions (Gropper, 1963;Hagen, 1974;Ryan & Schwartz, 1956;Severin, 1967). Furthermore, the fact that participants in the text condition referred to a picture of the assembled object significantly more than those in the Text-Pictorial and TextPictorial-Arrows condition support the notion that including pictures in instruction manuals may serve as information that is used to monitor and confirm actions by actors, thus aiding overall performance (Brody, 1984;Cutting, 1982).…”

Modeling and analyzing the topicality of art images

“…Stage-setting (Schriver, 1997): the image forecasts the content or theme of the text Inspiration (Schwarcz, 1982) Comparison (Brody, 1984;Ilson, 1987;Marsh & White, 2003): the image sets off similar or dissimilar information; making explicit intended elements of comparison between objects depicted in text; emphasize points of similarity between image and text Comparison (Passonneau et al, 2008): Text that discusses the art object in reference to one or more other works to compare or contrast the imagery, technique, subject matter, materials, etc. [CLiMB-2] By similarity (analogy) Metaphor/ Analogy…”

“…Metaphor (Ilson, 1987;Shklovsky, 1965): rhetorical strategies used to break through the sales resistance by providing novel and arresting ideas and images [advertising] Analogy (Brody, 1984)…”

The interrelations between diagrammatic representations and verbal explanations in learning from social science texts

“…Many of the scholars in areas as diverse as cognitive psychology, instructional technology, mass communication, linguistics and artificial intelligence either ignore nonverbal representation or place it in a non-critical secondary role. As suggested by Brody (1984), it might be productive to compare instructional techniques that are seemingly different but functionally equivalent. In other words, any generalization (whether related to verbal communication only, to graphic devices, or to both) based on how verbal and non-verbal systems function in instructional settings would be more powerful and more useful than generalizations based on a narrower perspective that isolates graphics from research on verbal processing.…”