1. Brief Description: Motion visuals are training items that provide graphic imagery of topics inclusive of movement with video being the primary example in use today. A powerful tool in education, it can bring amazing content to a classroom in a colorful, engaging, and cost effective manner.
2. Standards and Goals: (when, how and where to use for instructional meaningful connections, how would this be used in the real world): Motion visuals are best used as an educational aid to augment curriculum where movement, interaction of components, or graphic representation of abstract ideas can assist learners in building understanding of concepts. A video of an individual talking would not be the most appropriate use of motion visuals, however if the subject is the interaction of rotating gears or how the motion of surf and tides creates erosion of beaches, a motion visual may be quite effective. The key to remember is that the motion aspect should be an essential element to the learning and the topic.
3. Application to types of learning:
a. Cognitive objectives: (Prior knowledge, reading ability, vocabulary levels): Motion visuals tend to be most effective for learners with limited prior knowledge as significant prior knowledge of the topic may interfere with the effectiveness of the motion visual based on the learners’ preexisting understanding of the subject matter. Motion visuals can be used to teach recognition and/or discrimination of relevant motion stimuli. It can be used to teach rules, principles, and it is possible (although not economical) to display words. Interactive or recorded video can also provide immediate feedback to students concerning their performance, especially in a visual, motion, or mechanical realm (Bergeron, 2019). Reading ability has little impact on motion visuals unless the learner has hearing impairments which require the reading of closed captions. Vocabulary levels used in the media should be appropriate for the education level of the learner.
b. Psychomotor objectives: (interpretive movement, physical and perceptual abilities): While the learners do not need any specific psychomotor skills to watch motion visuals, it is a beneficial medium to visually demonstrate interpretive movement or physical abilities/processes. Motion visuals like video can be useful tools to help students model motion skills and can be used to exaggerate motion – either slowing it down or speeding it up – to teach mind-body coordinations such as techniques for using tools, or other physical acts such as swimming. Recorded video of a student can also be used to provide immediate visual feedback to them on their ability to perform motion skills (Bergeron, 2019). Perceptual abilities will be key to proper understanding of displayed content. Visually impaired students will need to rely on audio transcriptions.
c. Affective objectives:(senses, what attentive needs and abilities, value/emotion requirement, motivation to learn):
Motion visuals can be beneficial when content is meant to raise awareness of cultural understanding or to insight emotions to spark conversation.
4. Strengths: When compared to text or still images, motion visuals allow the learner to see physical movement and the relationships of objects to other items which can be essential when teaching processes or mechanical interfaces. Other strengths include
- Risk-Free Observation – Potentially dangerous processes can be watched without the risk of injury to the learners.
- Dramatization – Historical figures and events can be viewed as if they were in the classroom and engaged in activities.
- Affective Learning – The emotional impact of motion visuals and videos can help shape attitudes, both personal and social.
- Problem Solving – A dramatization or open-ended video can allow learners to discuss possible solutions or alternatives.
- Cultural Understanding – The ability to see how other cultures live and interact from a near-first hand perspective can build understanding and appreciation for other value systems.
- Commonality – A common base of experience from a video can allow groups with different opinions to begin to work together towards solutions.
(Smaldino, Lowther, & Mims, 2018)
5. Limitations: While the action and relatively constant change contained in motion visuals can increase student interest in the instruction, there are also significant limitations which must be considered before employing them in a learning environment:
- Fixed Pace – Although modern motion visuals like streaming videos and DVDs frequently have the ability to pause, back up, and move forward, when in a group environment they act much like film in that they are usually played at a constant pace which may be too slow for some learners and too fast for others.
- Talking Head – Many films and videos consist of images of someone talking, i.e. a “talking head” which is a relative waste of the capabilities of the medium as the same content could be passed via audio or text.
- Still Phenomena – Ensure you use motion visuals for concepts that involve motion or where the motion would enhance the understanding of interactions. If a detailed study of a still visual like a photo will provide understanding, then it may be better suited as such.
- Misinterpretation – Documentaries and interpretive videos can present a complex or potentially biased viewpoint on an issue. Things like satire may be taken as serious or misunderstood by younger or more naive students. (Smaldino, Lowther, & Mims, 2018)
- Time, Cost and Equipment – Producing or watching certain types of motion visuals may require substantial investment on the part of the developer, school, or teacher. These costs must be weighed heavily to ensure the motion visuals are appropriate for the topic and any identified advantage is worth the expense. Additionally, videos take time to set up and watch. If the video only strengthens a single point, it may not be worth the time consumed as apposed to a still visual, text, or verbal explanation. (Bergeron, 2019)
6. Special Features/Creative ideas: Motion visuals have the ability to show entire processes, provide vivid imagery of distant locations in a “walk-through” format, and can help learners conceptualize abstract ideas through the animation of components and visualization of items that are impossible to see in the real world, such as forces acting on an object or subatomic particle motion. While not applicable to all examples (such as film), many motion visual formats have the ability to stop, start, replay, and modify the speed at which the motion is displayed which allows learners to repeat key items or areas where they may be having difficulty. By combining aspects like real life items/people, animated characters or representations, audio tracks, and interactive features, designers can build a captivating learning tool which will enhance the instructor’s content.
7. UDL/ Accessibility requirements: Key items to add will be adjustable volume and closed captioning for the hearing impaired, adjustable text and image size for visually impaired learners, playback speed and repeat ability for students with learning impairments, and monitoring colors, activity levels, and image flashes which may trigger unintended responses from students with other impairments such as autism or traumatic brain injuries.
8. Technology Resources/websites:
There are a multitude of resources for developing motion visuals, including:
Video Capture/Editing: Screencast-O-Matic, Camtasia, Adobe Premier, Movavi
Virtual Reality: ARCore, Tilt Brush, A-Frame, Amazon Sumerian
Augmented Reality: ARCore, Vuforia, DeepAR, EasyAR
9. Examples of motion visuals:
10. References:
Bergeron, C. (2019, April 9). Re: Motion Visuals [Online course wiki page comments]. Retrieved from https://cyberactive.bellevue.edu/ultra/courses/_483792_1/cl/outline
Smaldino, S. E., Lowther, D. L., & Mims, C. (2018). Instructional technology and media for learning (12th ed, pp178-186). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.
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