The educational screen (c1922-c1956])

378 The Educational Screen Enriching Learning Through the Use of Visual Aids* George C. Kyte, Associate Professor of Education, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri. A SHORT time ago a scientist whose greatness will never be questioned, paused in the course of his activities in his own field of effort to indulge in some rather positive statements on a subject which was foreign to anything in his previous experiences. He has been quoted as stating in the course of his remarks that if the total essential human knowledge could be reproduced in a series of moving picture films, an individual's exposure to them would be sufficient to make of him a well educated person. Since many teachers using moving pictures as educational means have made the same assumption thoughtlessly and merely exposed pupils to visual materials, is it any wonder that an eminent lay person should err similarly in assuming that adequate returns are thus obtained? Such a type of teaching is analogous to the methods of planting seed adopted by the lax farmer. When the planting season arrives he harnesses his ill-kept nag to a dilapidated seeder and without further ado scatters the seeds over his land. Copious quantities are thrown to the winds in the hope that a sufficient amount will take root as will guarantee a good yield of crop. Not a very long time ago a teaching situation developed which afforded me the opportunity to observe this same method applied to educational planting. The boys of a certain school were assembled in the auditorium to be exposed to six reels showing the manufacture of an automobile. The classes crowded in with evident anticipation of seeing a "movie" in much the same spirit as if they were going to a "thriller" in a local theatre. During the first few reels they watched the picture with considerable interest. Then a restless murmur began to sweep over the audience. It grew and persisted as the program was continued. The waning of interest in many cases was very noticeable. Rapidly it approached a climax when it became certain that the picture would require time beyond the closing hour of school. Shortly before this time was reached a continual stream of boys began to seek the various teachers and made to them the strangest collection of excuses for being dismissed that anyone ever heard. Many others turned their attention to this growing fine but refrained from joining it because of the large number of unsuccessful pleas noted. I am sorry to say that I did not have the opportunity to observe the follow up lessons which took place in some of the classes the next day, but from what happened at the showing of the pictures I am sure that the results were unquestionably poor. The possible outcome from the proposed moving picture educational plan of the great scientist would be correspondingly unsatisfactory without a doubt. These remarks are not intended to convey to you the idea that moving pictures should not have a place in our educational scheme. On the contrary I am sure that there is no question in the minds of most of our educational leaders that the film and in fact many other kinds of visual aids should be used more extensively in the classroom in order to obtain better results in learning. The problem we face is how to use as well as what to use as visual aids in order that efficient learning will be maintained. The careful farmer exemplifies for us the ^ •Address before the Visual Instruction Conference at Oakland, July, 1923. \