Teaching Resources - Visual, Audio and Other

   Numerous studies have shown that people learn best when more than one of the senses are utilized in their study experience.  When students are asked to see, touch, taste, or smell, in addition to listening, learning can be enhanced.  Often, visual and audio experiences create a readiness for the Spirit to fulfill his functions. 
   The following are only a few ways a teacher can bring other senses besides hearing into the learning process.

Chalkboard
   On a chalkboard a teacher can outline the major points or principles of the lesson, diagram a doctrine or event, outline maps, develop flow charts, draw pictures of things found in the scriptures, create charts showing historical events, list things from the scriptures as students find them, or do a dozen or more other activities that can enhance learning.

Objects and Pictures
   Objects and pictures can be used to help students visualize what the people, places, events, objects and symbols in the scriptures looked like.  Instead of just talking  about yokes (see Matthew 11:28-30), a teacher could bring a picture of one to class or draw one on the board; he or she might even bring one.  Students could smell and touch a flower as they read about the "lilies of the field (see Matthew 6:28-29).  They could taste unleavened bread  Objects or pictures of things that students may already be familiar with can be used to help them discover new things about the scriptures or can be compared to a spiritual principle.  Pictures can be effective in helping students visualize and understand the scriptures, especially when they are used to stimulate a discussion by asking questions about the picture.  Maps and charts can also help explain what is happening in the verses.

Music
   The Lord said, "For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads" (D&C 25:12).  Consider the following statement of the First Presidency"
   "The hymns invite the Spirit of the Lord, create a feeling of reverence, unify us as members, and provide a way for us to offer praises to the Lord.
   "Some of the greatest sermons are preached by the singing of hymns.  Hymns move us to repentance and good works, build testimony and faith, comfort the weary, console the mourning, and inspire us to endure to the end. (preface to Hymns, p.ix.).
   These conditions are aspects of edifying teaching.  Following are some ways to use music to enhance the learning experience:

• Talk to students about the importance of music in worship and about the importance of music in worship and about how it can help create a climate where the Spirit can more effectively function.  Remind them that they will never learn to enjoy singing the hymns of the Church until they start to sing the hymns of the Church.
• Have inspirational music playing as students come to class or during class while they are working on a writing assignment.
• At appropriate times during the lesson, sing a hymn that is directly related to what is being taught for that day.  For example, sing "Love One Another" (Hymns, no. 308) when teaching about the events of the Last Supper (see John 13-14), or sing "Praise to the Man" (Hymns, no. 27) with Doctrine and Covenants 135.  There is both a scriptural and a topical index in the back of the hymnbook that can be helpful in this regard.
• Music can be part of scripture mastery exercises.  Have the class sing a hymn together, and then have students find scriptures that teach the same principle as found in the hymn.

Audio Visual Presentations
   Audio tapes, videos, and movies can recreate important events from the scriptures or dramatize how people try to deal with problems and apply scriptural principles.  They can help students visualize and experience what is happening.  They provide opportunities for the Spirit to bear witness of the truth.  They can dramatize how principles taught in the scriptures can be applied in modern life.
   Too often, teachers show or play a piece of a video or an audio tape without making it part of their overall lesson plan or without using it fully to enhance learning.   The use of audiovisual resources can be made more inspiring if students are invited to participate in the learning experience by looking for how the message of the story applies to their life.  It may be helpful to write on the chalkboard what students could do as they watch or listen to the story.
   Sometimes only part of the movie, video, or audio tape is necessary to make the point or to stimulate a discussion.  Sometimes there may be value in pausing during the presentation to point out information that will help the students.

Cautions
   Perhaps more than with other teaching skills, the use of visual and audio resources in teaching comes with some inherent challenges.  And sometimes they are both misused and abused.  Teachers should ask themselves the following questions as they prepare to use these methods:

1. Does it help the students learn what is important?  A video, movie or audio tape can be very entertaining or impressive to students, but does it directly contribute to the purposes of the lesson and what students need to learn?  Have the students been prepared so they will benefit from the message?  Using these resources because they are time fillers or entertaining are not sufficient reasons for their use.
    
2. Is it worth the time it takes?  Elder Boyd K. Packer counseled: "Audio and visual aids in a class can be a blessing or a curse, depending upon how they are used.  They might be compared to spices and flavorings that go with a meal.  They should be used sparingly to accent or make a lesson interesting, but the basic instruction, when all is said and done, will for the most part be lecture, question and answer, and recitation" (Teach Ye Diligently, p. 224).
    
3. Is it appropriate and in keeping with Church standards?  In other words, is it edifying? Many products produced in the world may carry a good message, but with them come undesirable features that may offend or teach ideas that are not desirable in religious education.  Even if a short video or audio segment is appropriate, if it comes from an inappropriate source it should not be used.  And even with the chalkboard there are items that can be drawn or diagrammed that are not appropriate in religious education.  Items that are controversial or sensational usually do not build faith and testimony.
    
4. Will it violate copyright laws?  Many videos and other commercially produced products have use restrictions and are protected by copyright laws.  In recent years, holders of copyrights in many countries have become much more aggressive in seeking out and prosecuting violators of copyright laws.  It is important that all teachers and leaders in CES follow these guidelines so that they are in compliance with the law and so that neither they nor the Church are liable for legal action.

Unit 4