After reading all about the multimedia principle I was only confirmed in my thinking that people learn better with a combination of both pictures and words rather than just one or the other. I know from previous experience that many students are visual learners and when introduced to a new concept need the addition of pictures to start building connections between processes and content. One of the most difficult elements that goes along with multimedia is where to place it in your lessons. We don’t want to get into the mindset of adding media into teaching “just because we have to” but instead strategically infusing photos, diagrams, videos, or even animations to further elevate the desired effect of our lesson. Teachers should step outside their comfort zone to try new multimedia techniques and more importantly LISTEN to the feedback students are giving them. By catering media to the students’ needs an overall more successful teaching environment will be created.

Photo by Teemu Paananen on Unsplash

I decided to dive into Sketchnoting as I predicted it would connect nicely to the multimedia principle described above and I was right. I already use elements of colour, different fonts, highlighting in my written note-taking but nothing compared to the vibrant display that Sketchnoting provides. What’s great about Sketchnoting is that there is no external software and the what and how of it all depends on you. I really like this format as there are no “rules” and you do what works best for you.

Wrapping up from the Multimedia principle article to Sketchnoting, this week the tasks allowed me to reflect deeply on how visuals affect my learning. As a teacher I want to be able to support my students who may need more multimedia elements added into the lessons and by doing this course I feel I am on the right track to do so.