Visual thinking applied in e-learning
Surely you have seen videos or online explanations using drawings. It is called Visual Thinking and it consists of expressing ideas through texts, images, and drawings with different relationships between them. Its main characteristic is its ability to make it easy to understand what you want to explain. What do you think about including it in your e-learning courses?
How can you include visual thinking in your e-learning?
When including these elements in your e-learning you must take into account certain criteria that you must follow. The first thing you should do is look, observe, and decide what you want to do visual thinking about. You should try to explain what you want through real, everyday situations. Then, it will be time to select. The topic is probably very broad and you should choose only a part so that the content is not too heavy. Finally, you must establish a kind of script so that you can develop the story or decide where you will place these elements so that their function is effective.
If you are not very good with drawings, this option will surely scare you, don’t worry. Visual thinking is not just drawings and stories with them. Infographics can be a useful element to display information and organize it in a more accessible way. Sometimes just one image can be enough. Sometimes including too many can cause the information to be overwhelmed and not understood well. If you have already explained the theory correctly in writing, an image may be enough to complete everything you want to say.
Videos are the star elements of the audiovisual world and could not be missing. Currently, you have numerous applications with which you can mount them. In them, you can use simple graphics, recreate freehand drawings, include texts and posters, etc. Any option is good if you can create a quality video that explains what you want to discuss.
When deciding between all these elements, you must take into account what you need, and, above all, what you can do. Think about your skills and abilities. You may want to include one of these videos, but that takes a lot of work and time. If you think that you will not be able to dedicate everything it requires, it is better not to try it and go for something simpler. Regarding images or infographics, think that, in many cases, less is more. Simply by including any of these elements you can achieve the result you need.
How can including visual thinking elements in your e-learning benefit you?
Numerous studies have shown that it is much easier to understand technical and theoretical content through visual elements. You will be able to show a much more innovative and modern image of your e-learning course. Therefore, relying on these types of elements can be a way to provide other types of tools to your students that make their learning easier.
By including these options in your e-learning course you will ensure that students can simplify complex ideas. You can take advantage of these tools to develop ideas that are more complicated and heavy. With this, you will ensure that your students can understand it better and also that it will not be so burdensome for them to receive that information only in written form. Take advantage of all these advantages!
