Review

Author(s): Ray L. Anderton

Review by: Ray L. Anderton
Source: Educational Communication and Technology, Vol. 27, No. 3 (Fall, 1979), pp. 239-240
Published by: Springer
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/30218005
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 BOOK REVIEWS 239

of appropriate materials. Efforts by a few volume emphasizes the comprehensive

commercial developers to design materials changes with which our nation's public
for a specific learning problem are credited. school system will have to cope during the
Federally funded initiatives such as the Na- next 3 to 5 years. As Blatt stated in the
tional Instructional Materials Information opening chapter, "Surely there will be
System and the Materials Analysis Project problems. But there will also be opportuni-
represent good models to be replicated. ties never before possible" (p. 14). O
Two statewide efforts aimed at assisting
teachers are the Ohio HELPS project and
the Specialized Education Resource Sys-
tem (SERS) of Texas. Conclusive evidence
on the effects of these and other programs
is not yet available.
Komoski states the problem clearly, of-
fers a model that relates current selection
processes to value systems, and concludes
with four recommendations for disseminat-
ing the work that must be done to "imple-
ment P.L. 94-142 with deliberate speed."
Evaluators of instructional materials for all
students can learn from this chapter.

Challenges and Opportunities

The final chapter, "What Directions

Should Research Take in Developing Edu-
cational Programs for the Severely Handi-
capped?" by Alan M. Hofmeister, is one of
two concentrated on the area of research. Strategies for Improving Visual
Hofmeister proposes several avenues for Learning, by Francis M. Dwyer. State
further study which will have direct benefit
College, Pa.: Learning Services (P.O.
for practicing administrators and teachers
Box 784, State College, 16801). 1979. 266
facing difficult decisions. He emphasizes
pages. $20.00 (Instructor's Manual,
the need for data which would lead to the
development of new programs and the $4.00; Student's Manual, $5.00).
creation of quality control for those already
established. He feels these two
Reviewed by Ray L. Anderton
technologies hold the greatest promise for
bringing about improvement. Challenges
Are educators misusing visuals? Are edu-
are issued in the form of recom-
cational
mendations, providing an open-ended media producers making visuals
conclusion for the book. more complex and spending more money
Read with careful thought and on them than is necessary?
consid-
In Strategies for Improving Visual Learning
eration, this volume will give professional
Francis M. Dwyer answers "yes"-under
educators valuable insight into problems
encountered when a significant certain
piece ofcircumstances all these things are
true. He has written a book that will be
legislation is implemented. The educa-
popular
tional technologies presented in this bookwith researchers and very likely
could as easily benefit instruction for
nonhandicapped students. Numerous bib-
liographic citations at the closeRay ofL.each
Anderton is director of the Auraria Media
chapter lead the interested reader Center
to addi-
and associate professor of education, Univer-
tional current reading. As a whole,sity of the
Colorado at Denver.

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240 ECTJ FALL 1979

unpopular with those who believe that ity to profit from visualized instruction-
learning is always improved by adding give a theoretical justification for visual
visuals to a presentation. testing, and look at related research find-
ings. The final chapter "suggests a proce-
dure to be followed for the empirical vali-
Design and Use
dation of visual materials for instructional

With this book, Dwyer has made a major purposes-a procedure that will provide a
contribution to the field of visual research. reasonable basis for selecting the types of
His primary purpose was "to emphasize visual materials possessing the most bene-
the interrelatedness of variables associated ficial cost-effectiveness relationship in
with the effective use of visual materials terms of facilitating student achievement of
and to attempt to draw general trends from predetermined educational objectives."
prior research for the effective design and
use of visual media." By including an In- Interrelatedness of Variables
structor's Manual and a Student's Manual he
has extended the usefulness of his book Dwyer has met the purposes stated in
beyond that primary purpose and created the preface. By the end of the text, the
tools for teaching visual research methods. reader is well aware of the interrelatedness
The book is well written and well organ- of the variables associated with the effec-
ized. Each chapter contains a list of learn- tive use of visuals and general trends for
ing objectives, a summary of the main the effective design and use of visual
ideas, some review activities, and a short media. However, it seems that something
list of recommended readings. In addition, is missing. If this book "is intended for
chapters 2, 5, 6, and 7 suggest optional those professions whose members actively
small-group or individual activities. Dwyer use or produce materials for instructional
provides a variety of information in the and/or training purposes," then a summa-
form of tables and figures that will be use- tion of general trends is needed, even if
ful to aspiring and proven researchers and some statements have to be qualified. I was
concludes the book with a valuable index left with a feeling that the book is incom-
of 625 authors and a list of 650 references. plete.
Nevertheless, Dwyer's book should be
Research welcomed by researchers of all kinds and,
in particular, by those involved in strate-
After describing the "potentials and limi-
gies for improving visual learning. O
tations of visualized instruction," Dwyer
provides an overview of research dealing
with realism theories and multiple and
single channel communication theories. He
then proceeds with a strategy for conduct-
ing research, a strategy that new re-
searchers would do well to emulate. Chap-
ters 4-12 examine methods of pre-
sentation-television vs. slide/audio-
tape vs. programed instruction; extern-
ally paced and self-paced instruction;
use of color; general parameters and re-
search on cueing as an instructional strat-
egy in visualized instruction; effect of cue-
ing on student achievement systematically
evaluated; relationship of aptitude-by-
treatment interaction research to the
proper design and use of visualized in-
struction; importance of individual dif-
ferences and their effect on students' abil-

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