A visual aid is anything used in teaching which helps students to learn by seeing rather than just listening, reading, or doing.

Suggest a visual aid which might be useful for teaching each of the following

• The parts of a sewing machine.
• How to feed chickens.
• Stages in starting an outboard motor.
• The digestive system of a cow.
• Making an oven to bake bread.
• Increase in population in Solomon Islands.
• Types of coral.
• Fishing with a net.
• Types of toilet for village use.
• Location of Rural Training Centres in Solomon Islands.

Read summary sheets A11, Why use visual aids? ,and A12 Machinery and electronic equipment. As you do so, complete the following activities.

Write to the following places, and others you can find, and ask for pictures or posters useful in teaching your subject.

· Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries.

· Ministry of Health and Medical Services.

· Companies which sell engines e.g. Solomon Motors.

· The Pacific Community (formerly South Pacific Commission), Noumea, New Caledonia. Pictures useful for Agriculture, Conservation, Health, Nutrition and many others.

Choose any topic within your subject area and make a series of charts or flip charts useful in teaching the topic.

 

1. Practice diagrams and writing on the blackboard, by making up notes and diagrams for any topic in your subject area.

2. Prepare a 10 – 15 minute session based on a series of visual aids (not just blackboard).

3. Teach this to the rest of the class.

4. Ask the class to comment on your use of the visual aids.

Two ways of bringing reality into your teaching are to use video cassettes if you have a machine or to take students on visits.

1. Your tutor will show you an educational cassette.

Watch it more than once and make up a worksheet to help students learn from the cassette.

Read summary sheet A13, Visits.

2. Make a list of places within reach of your local RTC, or the RTC where you teach, which would be useful for students to visit.

State the purpose of each visit. Write a worksheet to guide the students on one such visit.