Field-trip (As a Teaching Method of Clinical Teaching)

A field-trip is a visit especially planned for its possible contribution to the

objectives of the curriculum" course, project, lesson or other unit of instructions.
Field trip is one of the most concrete and most realistic
educational procedures. It is one of the oldest method used
even by the early Greek teachers.

Definition

An educational trip is defined as 'an educational procedure by which the students

obtain first hand information by observing places, objects, phenomena or
activities and process in their natural setting, to further learning'.

Purposes
1.To provide real life situations for first hand information.
2.To supplement classroom instruction, to secure definite information for a
specific lesson.
3.To serve as a preview of a lesson and for gathering instructional materials.
4.To verify previous information, class discussions and conclusion of
individual experiments.
5.To serve as a means of arousing specific interest in materials objects, places
or processes.
6.To create teaching situations for cultivating observation, keenness, and
discovery.
7.To serve as a means to develop positive attitudes values, and special skills.

Organization and Procedure of Field-trip

A Preplanning.
B. Actual conduct of the trip.
 C. Evaluation.
Preplanning
 By teacher
 By students
By the teacher
1.Decide on the trip.
2.Know the resources.
3.Obtain administrative sanction of school/college.
4.Dealings with the organisation - obtain permission, data and time, visit and
know the resources. Inform the objectives.
5.Arrange transport, time, date.
6.Prepare the students with theoretical base.
Teacher plans with the students
1.Formulate objectives.
2.List down specific information to be obtained.
3.Formulate questions to be asked to the guide and prepare guide sheet.
4.If a large group, divide and allot specific jobs.
5.Brief them-equipments or accessories needed, data and time of transport,
actual location, set up, conduct and behavior during the trip, safety
precautions to be observed.

Actual conduct of the trip

1.Follow the schedule.
2.Strictly follow safety precautions.
3.Observe and collect information needed.
4.Collect source/study materials if provided.
5.Teacher supervisors, and call attention to the pertinent points.
6.Observe formalities and extend courtesies.
Points to Remember
 Trip should follow in an orderly manner.
 Do not cause disturbance to the organisation.
Evaluation phase
1.Should be done as early as possible.
2.Students write a report with the observations, effectiveness of the trip, and
difficulties faced.
3.Teacher evaluates the reports by the student.
4.Teacher prepares an evaluation and along with specific observations from the
students maintains a record which can be referred later.
5.Conducts discussion with the students.

Organization and Procedure for Field-trips

The essential prerequisite to any successful field-trip is a well thought out plan.
1 Knowledge: Teacher has to survey the area to know whether the field
trips planned will contribute to the attainment of desired objectives.
2 Rapport: The teacher should establish and maintain cordial relations with
those incharge of the situations to be visited.
3.Objectives: Objectives should be stated carefully and completely. The
learning activities have to be selected and it should contribute for the
attainment of objectives.
4 Time and transportation: Necessary arrangements have to be made with the
administrative personnel of the place to be visited regarding the time,
place of meeting and the length of visit.
5.Preparation of the students: Students should be given an opportunity to list
cooperatively the objectives for which the trip is planned. Directions to
be given on the procedure to be followed in the observation and the
special points to note.
6.Supervision: Trip should be-supervised carefully. The teacher can assist
the student by calling attention to pertinent point.

Follow-up and evaluation Following the Field-trip, an hour should be allotted

for an open discussion. It can be done by means of students' Reports.
Discussion, questions by students and teacher. Experiences of the student
and information obtained by the Field-Trip should be carefully correlated
 and integrated with class subjects and activities.
Values of the Field-trip
1.It breaks monotony of the classroom and provides real life experiences.
2.It furnishes first hand information to supplement and to enrich the
classroom instruction.
3.It provides opportunity in learning attitudes and positive values, i.e.
cooperation, discipline.
4.They correlate and blend school life with the outside world, providing
direct touch with persons and with community situations.
5.It provides opportunities in learning and acquiring skills, i.e.
observation, communication, critical thinking, and social skills.
6.Students develop better understanding of the aetiologic factors of
disease.
7.Field trips arouse interest and vitalize instruction thereby providing
motivation, i.e. it provides opportunity to have above participations and
gears motivation.
8.It helps to create situations which in turn help to develop observation
and keenness.
9.Offers an opportunity to apply that which has been
taught to verify what has been learned.
10 They serve as an effective means of correlating the subjects of the
curriculum.
11 They provide opportunity to consider and to solve problems arising
from individual and group participation in a natural social situation.

Disadvantages of Field Trips

1.Field trip is time-consuming.
2.Careful planning is required.
3.Many parties to be involved, cooperation, coordination of various agencies
required.
4.Transportation may be a problem.
 5.Since the students are going out of school/college premises it is risky, safety
precaution essential.
6.If the group is too large, effective observation becomes difficult.
7.Inability to schedule the trip in time when the unit is taught.
8.It involves cost, i.e., sometimes cost involvement is more.

Summary
To get maximum value from a visit as a method of teaching, careful planning is
necessary before hand. As with films, the teacher must pick the visit with care
and know what her aims are for the students in doing so. The students should
know what they are going to see and why. Prepared questions, the answers to
which must be discovered during the visit may help thoughtful observation,
Written questions, the answers based on what the students have seen but not
merely describing the visit, may be given after the students return.
The students need to recognize the privilege that is being extended to them by
those receiving them on the visit. Their behavior, (including punctuality) routine
and during the visit must be the concern of the tutor. Such opportunities
encourage thoughtful attitudes and personal growth. One student may be chosen
to express the thanks of the group at the time and another may write the letter of
appreciation.
Additional points that the teacher must remember:
i. Arrange visits well in advance.
ii. Transport careful timing is essential.
iii.Adequate time for the visit must be allowed on time table.
Instructional Materials

Instructional aids should not be confused with training

media. Educators generally described training media as any physical means
that communicates an instructional message to students. For example, the
instructor's voice, printed text, video cassettes, interactive computer programs,
part-task trainers, flight training devices or flight simulators, and numerous
other types of training devices are considered training media. Instructional
aids, on the other hand, are devices that assist an instructor in the teaching-
learning process. Instructional aids are not self-supporting; they are
supplementary training devices. The Key factor is that instructional aids
support, supplement, or reinforce.
For many years, educators have theorized about haw the human brain
and the memory function during the communicative process. There is general
agreement about certain theoretical factors that seem pertinent to
understanding the use of instructional aids.
During the communicative process, the sensory register of the memory
acts as a filter. As stimuli are received, the individual's sensory register works
to short out the important bits of information from the routine or less
significant bits. Within seconds, what is passed to the working or short-term
memory where it is processed for possible storage in the long-term memory.
This complex process is enhanced by the use of appropriate instructional aids
that highlight and emphasize the main points or concepts.
The working or short-term memory functions are limited by both time
and capacity. Therefore, it is essential that the information be arranged in
useful bits or chunks for effective coding, rehearsal, and recording. The
effectiveness of the instructional aid is critical for this process. Carefully
selected charts, graphs, pictures, or other well-organized visual aids are
examples of items that help the student understand, as well as retain, essential
information.
Ideally, instructional aids should be designed to cover the key points
and concepts. In addition, the coverage should be straightforward and factual
so it is easy for students to remembers and recall. Generally, instructional aids
that are relatively simple are best suited for this purpose.
Group Learning:
The various methods that come under the general heading of group
learning usually require no specialized hardware and (in many cases) very little
in the way of courseware other than textual materials (booklets, briefing-sheets,
worksheets, ect); indeed, the emphasis is usually. very much on the approach or
technique rather than a reliance on specific types of
hardware or courseware. Nevertheless, it is vitally important that any
courseware that is required for such an exercise should be very carefully
designed, since it can play a key role in making sure that the exercise runs
smoothly. Some of the specific ways in which such courseware can be used in
group learning activities are given below:
 Forming an integral part of the group-learning process by providing
background information, information about roles, instruction, and soon
 Proving supplementary or enrichment material
 Increasing student motivation through visually- attractive or intrinsically
interesting material
As in the case of mass instruction and individualized learning, a large
number of different types of materials can again be used to fulfils these various
functions
Presentation techniques and instructional media

Compared with their counterparts of 30 or 40 years ago,

modern teachers and trainers have a vast and often bewildering range of
presentation techniques and instructional media at their disposal. These can,
however, conveniently be classified into seven broad groups, in order of
increasing technical sophistication. These groups are:
1. Printed and duplicated materials
2. Non-projected displays
3. Still projected displays
4. Audio materials
5. Linked audio and still-visual materials
6. Film and video material
7. Computer-mediated materials
Let us now take a broad look at these various groups and identify the general
characteristics of the media and that compose them.

Printed and duplicated materials: These comprise all

textual and handout materials to be used by students or trainees which can be
run off in large numbers by printing machines, photocopiers and duplicators.
Facilities for the production of such materials are now available in practically
every school, College and training establishment, and they have become the
most basic and widely used of the educational tools. Some of the more
important types are listed below:

 Handouts: These comprise all the different types of information-providing

materials that are given our to students or trainees, usually in connection
with a taught lesson or instructional programme of some sort. They include
sets of notes (either complete, or in skeleton or interactive form), tables,
diagrams, maps and illustrative or extension materials.

 Assignment sheets: These include problem sheets, reading lists, lab sheets,
briefing sheets for projects and seminars, worksheets, etc, They can be used
in all types of instructional situations.
Individualized study materials: These comprise all the
different types of textual materials that are used in connection with
individualized learning. They include open-learning materials, study
guides, placement guides, structured notes, textual programmed materials
and textual support materials for mediated-learning systems.

 Resource materials for group exercises: These comprise all the various printed
and duplicated materials that are used in connection with group-learning
exercises. They include background-reading material, briefing material, role
sheets, instruction sheets, data sheets, open-learning materials and so on.

Non-projected displays: As its name suggests, this category includes all visual
displays that can be shown to a class, small group or individual student
without the use of an optical or electronic projector of any sort. If includes
a number of the most basic and most useful visual aids that are available to
teachers and trainers, some of the more important of which are listed below:

 Chalkboards: These are dark- colored surfaces on which material can be

writer, printed or drawn using chalk. They are still one of the most widely
used of all visual aids, despite the fact that practically everything that
can be done using a chalkboard can be done more easily, less messily,
and(in most cases) more effectively using an overhead projector or data
projector. They are most useful for displaying impromptu 'signposts' and
'links', notes and diagrams during a taught lesson and for working through
calculation and similar exercises in front of a class.

 Marker boards: These are light colored surfaces on which material can be
writer, printed or drawn using felt pens, crayons or other markers of some
sort. They can be used in the same ways as chalkboards, and have
the advantage of being less messy and offering a wider range of colors. A
marker board can also double up as a projection screen if necessary.
Good instructional aids also can help solve certain
language barrier problems. Consider the continued expansion of technical
terminology in everyday usage. This, coupled with culturally diverse
backgrounds of today's students, makes it necessary for instructors to be
precise in tfteir choice of terminology. Words or terms used in an
instructional aid should be carefully selected to convey the same meaning
for the student as they do for the instructor. They should provide an accurate
visual image and make learning easies for the student.
Another use for instructional aids is to clarify the relationship between
material objects and concepts. When relationships are presented visually, they
often are much easier to understand. For example, the subsystems within
a physical unit are relatively easy to relate to each other through the use of
schematics or diagrams. Symbols, graphs and diagrams can also show
relationship of location, size, time, frequency, and value. By symbolizing the
factors involved, it is even possible to visualize abstract relationships.
Instructors are frequently asked to teach more and more
in a smaller time frame. Instructional aids can help them do this. For example,
instead of using many words to describe a sound, object, or function, the
instructor plays a recording of the sound, shows a picture of the object, or
presents a diagram of the function. Consequently, the student learns faster and
more accurately, and the instructor saves time in the process

Different Instructions Materials and Modes

It was shown that one of the first key steps in any systematic approach
to course or curriculum design should be the establishment of a clearly defined
set of educational objectives/learning outcomes. Once this has been done,
attention should be turned to the choice of teaching/learning methods capable
of achieving these objectives/learning outcomes. It is possible to divide all
such methods into three broad groups, which may be loosely described as
mass-instruction techniques, individualized-learning techniques and group-
learning techniques. Let us now see what roles instructional materials are
capable of playing in each.

Mass instruction: Within the context of the various techniques that can
be employed as vehicles for mass instruction, audiovisual and other
instructional materials can play number of roles. In some cases (e.g. the use of
visual aids, handouts or worksheets in a lecture or taught lesson), their role
will probably be mainly supportive; in others (e.g. video or multimedia
presentations or off-air broadcasts) they can constitute the very essence of the
method itself. In both cases, however, it is important that the materials be
chosen because of their suitability for achieving the desired instructional
objectives, and not merely because they 'happen to be available' or because the
teacher or trainer wants to 'fill in time', Some of the specific ways in which
instructional materials can be used in lectures and instructional materials can
be used in lectures and other mass-instructional situations are as follows:
 Forming an integral part of the main exposition by providing 'signposts',
 guidance for note-taking, illustrative material, worksheets, etc.
 Providing students with ready-made handout notes on what is being
covered, or with skeleton or 'interactive' handouts that they have to complete
themselves.
 Providing supplementary material (background reading, remedial or
extension material, enrichment material, and so on).
 Increasing student motivation by sensory stimulation, introducing visually-
attractive, interesting or simply 'different' material into an otherwise routine
lesson Illustrating application, relations, integration of one topic with
another, and so on.
As we will see later, a large number of different presentation media and
instructional materials can be used to fulfils these various functions.

Individualized learning: The role of instructional materials in individualized

learning is radically different from that in a mass-instruction system. In the
latter, their role is generally supportive, with the main vehicle of instruction
being the teacher or trainer in control of the class; in an individualized-
learning system. On the other hand, the materials themselves constitute
vehicle whereby instruction takes place. Thus it IS particularly important
that such materials should be designed and produced with the greatest case, for
if they are nol, the system could (at best) fail to achieve all its instructional
objectives and (at worst) break down completely. Some of the specific ways in
which instructional materials can be used in individualized learning are given
below:
 Providing instructions and/or guidance on how the learner should carry out a
particular course or programmed of study.
 Providing the actual material that has to be learned or worked on during the
course or programmed.
 Providing the learner with exercises for diagnostic or assessment purposes.
 Providing supplementary or enrichment material.
As in the case of mass instruction, a large number of types of media and
materials can be used to fulfill these various functions size (full-frame or
double-frame filmstrips). They are a and, when purchased commercially,
comparatively cheap alternative to slide sequences, and can be used in much
the same ways, using suitable filmstrip projectors or viewers for display or
study. -

 Microforms: Microform is a generic term for any 7 medium that is used to

carry micro-images, i.e. photographically reduced images of pages of text,
graphic material, etc. The most common types are microfilms (rolls or strips
of photographic film carrying a linear sequence of such images),
microfiches (transparent sheets of photographic film carrying a
matrix of such images and microcards (opaque sheets carrying similar
matrices of micro cards (opaque sheets carrying similar matrices of micro-
images). All such microforms can be used to carry the frames of
instructional programmes (e.g. programmes-learning sequences), to act as
highly compact data-banks, etc, and can be studied using special magnifying

viewers or projectors.

Audio Materials: This category includes all the various systems whereby
straightforward audio material can be played to a class, group or individual. It
includes number cf extremely useful- albeit often neglected - instructional
aids, some of the most important of which are described below:

Radio broadcasts: Educational radio broadcasts constitute an extremely useful

resource for teachers and trainers. Although they are often difficult to
incorporate into the timetable if listened to at the time they are actually
transmitted, this problem can easily be overcome by recording them for later
playback.

Audio discs: Recordings of music, plays, etc. on compact discs or (if you can
still obtain thernl) vinyl discs constitute a relatively inexpensive and readily
available instructional resource in certain subject areas. They are suitable both
for playing to a class or group and for private listening by individuals.
Increasing amounts of material are available on CD-ROM (see section on
'Computer-Mediated Materials'), enabling sound to be used interactively by
individual students.

 Audiotapes: Audio material recorded on open-reel tape or tape cassette

constitutes one of the most useful resources at the disposal of the modern
teacher or trainer, and can be used in a wide range of instructional
situations, either on its own or in conjunction with visual materials of some
sort (see next section).
Linked audio and still-visual materials: This is the first of the three classes in
which audio and visual materials are combined to form integrated instructional
system, and includes an number of media that are particularly suitable for use
in individualized instruction. Some of the most commonly-used systems are as
follows:

 Tape-slide programmes: Audiotape recordings (usually on compact tape

cassettes) synchronized with linked sequences of slides constitute one of the
most useful and ,commonly-used integrated audiovisual media. They are
particularly useful in individualized learning situations, but can also be used
in mass instrucitovn and group learning.

 Filmstrips with sound: These are simply filmstrips that have an accompanying
sound commentary, usefully on a compact tape cassette. They can be used
in much the same way as tape slide programs.

 Tape-text: Combinations of printed or duplicated materials with audio

recordings constitute and extremely useful individualized instruction
technique. The audio component can either be carries on a separate
audiotape (usually a compact tape cassette) or carried on a special strip or
sheet that is incorporated in the medium that carries the text; the latter
systems (known as audio cards, audio pages, talking pages, etc.) require
specialized equipment to use them.

Tape-model, tape realia, etc: These are combinations of audiotapes (usually

compact tape cassettes) and other still-visual display materials such asthree-
dimensional models, collections of realia (e.g. geological and biological
 specimens) and microscope slides. Such hybrid systems can prove
extremely useful vehicles for individualized instruction.

Film and video materials: This class includes media that enable audio signals
to be combined with moving visual sequences, thus enabling a further
dimension to be added to integrated audiovisual presentations. The main
systems that are currently available are as follows:

Cine films: Such films (mainly in 16 mm format) were once the main way of
showing moving images in a class. They have now been almost entirely
replaced by the use of video, however.

Television broadcasts: As in the case of educational radio

broadcasts, educational television broadcasts constitute an extremely useful
free resource for teachers and trainers. Ike the former, they are not usually
transmitted at convenient times, but, thanks to the development of relatively
cheap video recorders, this limitation can
 Felt boards: These are sheets if felt (or boards covered with felt) on which
moveable displays can be produced by sticking shapes cut out of or backed
with felt onto them. They constitute a comparatively cheap, highly
portable and extremely useful display technique, especially- in situations that
require the movement or re-arrangement of pieces (demonstrating table
setting, carrying out sports coaching, etc).

 Hook and loop boards: These are similar to felt boards, except that the backing
material on the display items has large numbers of tiny hooks that engage
loops on the surface of the display board. They are suitable for displaying
heavier items.

 Magnetic boards: These are ferromagnetic display boards on which moveable

displays can be produce using materials that are made of (or backed with)
magnetic materials, or are fitted with small magnets. They can be used in
much the same way as feltboards and hook and loop boards.

 Flipcharts: These are large sheets of paper that are

generally hung from an easel of some sort so that they can be flippedforwards
 or backwards in order to reveal the information on a particular sheet, or to
produce a fresh blank sheet on which impromptu information can be written
or drawn. The most recent flipcharts no longer require easels, working instead
on the same 'lift and stick' principle as post-its and thus having greater
portability.

 Charts and wall charts: These are large sheets cf paper, carrying pre-prepared
textual and/or graphical and/ or pictorial informa tion. Such charts can ei ther
be used to display information during the course of a lesson, or
can be pinned to the wall of a classroom in order to be studied by the students
in their own time. Wall charts, in particular, can be extremely useful for
providing supplementary material, or acting as a permanent aide-
memoire or reference system for learners (e.g. the periodic tables of the
elements that are prominently displayed in practically all chemistry
classrooms).

 Posters: These are similar to wallcharts, but generally contain less information-
often simply a single dramatic image. They are useful for creating atmosphere
in a classroom.

 Photographic Prints: Enlarged prints made from photographic negatives may be

incorporated into textual materials, wallcharts, etc and, in linked sequences
with suitable captions, can form a useful instructional medium in their own
right. Such sequences are particularly suitable for use in
programmes designed for individual study
Mobiles: These are systems of two or three-dimensional objects that are hung
from the roof of a class by thread, producing a visually - attractive display whose
shape in constantly changing due to air currents. They are particularly useful for
creating interest among younger children and demonstrating principles in
subjects like aeronautics and for architecture.
 Models: These are useful in cases where three-dimensional representation is
necessary (egg crystal structures, animal skeletons, etc)or where movement
has to be demonstrated, (e.g. flow of sediment, kinetic sculpture, etc).
 Dioramas: These are static displays that combine a three-dimensional
foreground (e.g. a model landscape of some sort) with a tow- dimensional
background, thus creating an aura of solidity and realism.

 Realia: These are real items (e.g. geological or biological specimens or

Marquette's) as opposed to models or representation thereof. They are
extremely useful if such materials are readily available, are easily
displayed or are an integral part of the development and marketing process.

Still Projected Displays: This category includes ail visual displays which do not
incorporate movement and which require an optical projector of some sort in
order to show them to a class or group or enable them to be studied by
an individual learner. It again includes some of the most useful" isual aids that
are available to teachers, instructors and trainers, other most important of which
are listed below:

 Overhead projector transparencies and similar materials:

These are textual or graphical images on large acetate sheets that can either be
displayed or viewed by individuals or small groups using a light box of some
sort. They are probably still the most useful and versatile visual aid that can
be used to support mass- instruction methods.

 Slides: These are single frames of 35 mm photographic film mounted in

cardboard, plastic or metal binders, often between twin sheets of glass. They
are one of the most useful methods of displaying photographic or
graphic images to a class, small group or individual student using a suitable
front or back-projector or viewer-either singly or in linked sequences.

 Filmstrips: These are simply strips of 35 mm film carrying linked sequences of

photographic images, each usually half the size of a standard 35mm frame
(half- frame or Single-frame filmstrips) but sometimes the full
 now be easily overcome. Recording may require the payment of a license tee,
however, recording may require the payment of a license fee, however.

Video tape recordings('videos'):

Television sequences or tailored programmes recorded on videocassette now
contribute one of the most usefuland powerful instructional media at the
disposal of teachers and trainers, and can be used in a wide range of teaching
learning situations.

Computer-mediated Materials:

This final category includes all the various materials that require a computer of
some sort to enable them to be displayed, studied or used. Arguably, the
computer constitutes the most important single resource ever to become
available to teachers and trainers since the invention of the printing press, and
may well have a similar revolutionary effect on the way education and training
are carried our, bringing about the massive shift from conventional expository
teaching to mediated individualized learning that many people are now
predicting and facilitating. Some of the main types of computer mediated
mediated materials are listed below.

 Conventional CBL materials: These are computer based learning systems

substitute-tutor packages, simulated laboratory packages, computer-
managed learning packages, etc that incorporate alphanumerical and
graphical materials, not still or moving photographic images or sound.
Such systems are usually produced on magnetic disc normally the 31/2
'floppy disks' that are now used by virtually all PC's. They come in
various
formats- "Read Only", "Read/Write", etc.

 Interactive video materials: Until the development of multimedia, this was

the main way of incorporating video material in computer-mediated
educational or training packages. In such systems, the video and.
computer elements of the package are stored on separate media (usually
videodisc and magnetic disc, and require two linked machines for their
 use a random-access video playback machine and a specially adapted PC
that controls the formers.

 Multimedia materials: Until the early 1990's, term 'multimedia' was used
to describe educational and train aging packages that were presented on
two or
more different media, e.g. textual materials supported by tape cassettes
and/or videos, or integrated systems such as tape-slide). Now, the term
is generally used to describe computer-mediated packages that
incorporate a wider range of materials than conventional CBL psvkshrd-
typically still and/or moving photographic images and sound. Such
packages are generally
produced on CD-ROM. Though out the U, NATIONAL Computers in
Teaching Initiative' (CTI) Centers provide up to date information on
such courseware in over twenty subject areas.
Guidelines for use of instructional aids
Guidelines for instructional aids includes the following:
 Support the lesson objective
 Be student centered
 Build on previous learning
 Contain useful and meaningfully content that is .
constant with sound principles of learning
 Appeal to students
 Maintain student attention and interest
 Encourage student participation, when appropriate
 Lead students in the direction of the behavior or learning outcomes
specified in the learning objective
 Provide proper stimuli and reinforcement
 Contain quality photos, graphs, and text, as required
 Be checked prior to use for completeness and technical accuracy
 Contain appropriate terminology for the student
 Be properly equenced
 Be easy to understand Include appropriate safety precautions
 The use of any instructional aid must be planned, based on its ability to
support a specific point in a lesson. A simple process can be used to
determined if and where instructional aids are necessary
 Clearly establish the lesson objective. Be certain of what is to be
communicated
 Gather the necessary data by researching for support material
 Organize the material into an outline or a lesson plan, The plan should
include all key points that need to be covered, This may include important
safety considerations
 Select the ideas to be supported with instructional aids.
The aids should be concentrated on the key points, Aids are often
appropriate when long segments of technical description are necessary, when a
point is complex and difficulty to put into words, when instructors find
themselves forming visual images, or when students are puzzled by an
explanation or description,
Aids should be simple and compatible with the learning
outcomes to be achieved. Obviously, an explanation of elaborate equipment may
require detailed schematics or mockups, but less complex equipment may lend
itself to only basic shaped or figures. Since, aids are normally used in
conjunction with a verbal presentation, words on the aid should be kept to a
minimum. In many cases, visual symbols and slogans can replace extended use
the aids as a crutch. The tendency toward unnecessarily distracting art work also
should be avoided.
Instructional aids should appeal to the student and be based on sound
principles of instructional design. When practical, they should encourage student
participation .They also should be meaningful to the student, lead to
the desired behavioral or learning objectives, and provide appropriate
reinforcement. Aids that involve learning a physical skill should guide student s
toward mastery of the skill or task specified in the lesson objective.
TEACHING MACHINE
Meaning

A teaching machine is a device designed to be operated by an individual

student. There is an interaction between the machine and the student.
Psychologists have found that important principles of affective learning are
accomplished by the use of machines with special instructional materials
prepared for use. The tutorial Socratic method of teaching is the base of all
programmes for teaching machines. It is usually accepted that teaching machines
provide not only better instruction and learning at lower costs with saving in time
but also ensure maximum student achievement. B. F. Skinner

Burrhus Frederic Skinner

March 20, 1904

Born
Susquehanna, Pennsylvania

August 18, 1990 (aged 86)

Died
Cambridge, Massachusetts
 Nationality American

Fields Psychologist

University of Minnesota
Institutions Indiana University
Harvard University

Hamilton College
Alma mater
Harvard University

Behavior analysis
Operant conditioning
Known for Radical behaviorism
Verbal Behavior
Operant conditioning chamber

Charles Darwin
Ivan Pavlov
Ernst Mach
Influences Jacques Loeb
Edward Thorndike
William James
Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Burrhus Frederic Skinner (March 20, 1904 – August 18, 1990) was an American
psychologist, author, inventor, social philosopher,[1][2][3] and poet.[4] He was the Edgar
Pierce Professor of Psychology at Harvard University from 1958 until his retirement
in 1974
Teaching machine

The teaching machine, a mechanical invention to automate the task of programmed

instruction

The teaching machine was a mechanical device whose purpose was to administer a
curriculum of programmed instruction. It housed a list of questions, and a mechanism
through which the learner could respond to each question. Upon delivering a correct
answer, the learner would be rewarded.

Sydney Pressey of the Ohio State University did a pioneering work in the
field of teaching machines. B.P Skinner also contributed a lot for this
remarkable development.
DEFINITION
Teaching machine is a computer or mechanical device used for
programmed instruction , which provides immediate corrective feedback and,
often, extra practice if needed
Types of Teaching Machines
Auto-instructional devices have reached a high level of technological
sophistication. The range includes from merely a set of cards in a card-board or
plastic case, or cyclostyled sheet; a write- in-machine using slides and tapes; a
multiple choice machine; a film machine, a machine using a combination of
microfilin and motion pictures; and a set of machines electronically tied in with a
television broadcast. '
Broadly speaking teaching machines can be classified under the
 following two categories:
1. Constructed response devices. These are' based on Skinner's principle,
namely emission of a response considered more effective in learning than
simple recognition. These machines are of the following types:
(a) The slider machine first developed by Skinner.
(b) The disk type machine
© The type writer-input computing machine.
(d) Audio-visual combination-television is perhaps the common
example of this; combined approach to teaching machines.
2. Multiple-choice machines. In multiple choice machines, it is possible to
prepare branches for every reply to a given question. These machines are of
the following type

(i) Pressy's machines consisting of a revolving drum and the programme

printed upon the face of the drum. in Audio-visual machine.

(iii) Electronic computer and multiple choice programmes.

(iv)Non-mechanical multiple-choice devices- punch cards consisting of small

cards that contain multiple choice items.

How do machines work

Although the fundamental principles on which teaching machines are based
remain the same variations are fond in the methods of teaching adopted by
different machines. Following are the main methods:
1. One method requires that the student constructs his own response, The
machine displays a question or problem which contains a blank covering one or
more words. Ute student is required to write these words on a piece of paper in
another part of the machine. Then he operates .a lever or pushes a button which
proposes the correct answer and at the same time, moves his answer under a
piece of glass or plastic so that he can compare but not change.
2 Very often the programme is presented in small discrete steps; each one
depending upon the preceding step. Information is presented in each item or step
 before the question is put.
3. Another method uses a multiple-choice approach. The student is presented a
multiple choice item along with a prompting information. He records his
response by pushing a button beside the proper number, or pushing a pencil
through a special hole etc. Here he is reacting to the alternatives and not
constructing an answer.
4. Another form of programming involves branching. In such a system, if the
student makes a mistake, the machine incorporating the branching device, may
take him off the main track of the programme on to a branch in order to build up
information or background before he returns to the main programme. The bright
student is allowed to move ahead rapidly after he has demonstrated competence
by answering a certain number of questions correctly.
5. There can be combination of two or more of the methods mentioned above.
6. The programme may concern verbal or non-verbal behavior. It may include
words, abstract concepts, pictures, maps, charts, diagrams, short motion pictures,
slides, tapes etc.
Uses of A teaching machine
1. Instruction is individualized.
2. The learner is allowed to learn at his own pace.
3. The content to be learnt is presented in small doses.
4. The likelihood of error is reduced to the minimum.
5. There is logical ordering of the subject-matter.
6.The device instantaneously checks the answer and the desired
reinforcement takes place.
7. The machine demands the active participation of the students.
8. The device may be operated electrically or manually.

A teaching machine does not replace a teacher

The teaching machines have received a scathing criticism at the
hands of many educational writers. One objection raised against them is that
auto-instruction might dehumanize education. But this is not valid. A student
working on a machine interacts with a non-human mechanical device, but he
also-interacts, to a greater degree, with the person who prepared the programme
the machine contains. A teaching machine may relieve a teacher of a large part
of his teaching 'responsibilities but few advocates of auto-instruction would
suggest that teachers be replaced by teaching machines. It is a recognized fact
that the human teacher is more versatile and adaptable than the most effective
auto-instruction device and these characteristics will always be required in the
classroom because students need the personal intellectual stimulation that
informal tutorials or seminars provide. The teaching machine succeeds as an aid
in the hands of a teacher but cannot replace him.
The teaching machines adopt the Socratic method of producing learning by
making students respond actively to questions and. by guiding their discovery
of the answers. This exciting method of teaching and learning has been
relegated to a state of neglect because mass education severely restricts this
personal interaction between teacher and student.

TEXT BOOK

Textbook

A textbook or course book (UK English) is a manual of instruction in any branch of

study. Textbooks are produced according to the demands of educational institutions.
Although most textbooks are only published in printed format, many are now
available as online electronic books and increasingly in scanned format in P2P
networks.

History

The ancient Greeks wrote texts intended for education. The modern textbook has its
roots in the standardization made possible by the printing press. Johannes Gutenberg
himself may have printed editions of Ars Minor, a schoolbook on Latin grammar by
Aelius Donatus. Early textbooks were used by tutors and teachers, who used the books
as instructional aids (e.g.,alphabet books), as well as individuals who taught
themselves.

The Greek philosopher Socrates (469-399 B.C.) lamented the loss of knowledge
because the media of transmission were changing. Before the invention of the Greek
alphabet 2,500 years ago, knowledge and stories were recited aloud, much like
Homer's epic poem The Odyssey.

The new technology of writing meant stories no longer needed to be memorized, a

development Socrates feared would weaken the Greeks' mental capacities for
memorizing and retelling. (Paradoxically, we know about Socrates' concerns only
because they were written down by his student Plato in his famous Dialogues.) [1]

The next revolution for books came with the 15th-century invention of printing with
changeable type. The invention is attributed to German metalsmith Johannes
Gutenberg, who cast type in molds using a melted metal alloy and constructed a
wooden-screw printing press to transfer the image onto paper.

Gutenberg's first and only large-scale printing effort was the now iconic Gutenberg
Bible in the 1450s — a Latin translation from the Hebrew Old Testament and the
Greek New Testament, copies of which can be viewed on the British Library Web site
www.bl.uk. Gutenberg's invention made mass production of texts possible for the first
time. Although the Gutenberg Bible itself was stratospherically expensive, printed
books began to spread widely over European trade routes during the next 50 years,
and by the 16th century printed books had become more widely accessible and less
costly.

Compulsory education and the subsequent growth of schooling in Europe led to the
printing of many standardized texts for children. Textbooks have become the primary
teaching instrument for most children since the 19th century. Two textbooks of
historical significance in United States schooling were the 18th century New England
Primer and the 19th century McGuffey Readers.

Technological advances change the way people interact with textbooks. Online and
digital materials are making it increasingly easy for students to access materials other
than the traditional print textbook. Students now have access to electronic and PDF
books, online tutoring systems and video lectures.

Most notably, an increasing number of authors are foregoing commercial publishers

and offering their textbooks under a creative commons or other open license.

The Importance of Textbooks for Students

Posted by babynoela in October 16th 2008

In times of financial difficulties, especially in third world countries, textbooks are the
last things that are being put on the list of needs for a student. When preparing for the
“Back to School” period, parents give much more attention to fees, Uniforms,
accommodation and feeding. Textbooks hardly even get mentioned. Why?

In the developed world, however, maybe a student won’t “really” need a textbook.
There is a vast pool of information on the internet, articles and online libraries, that a
student can use to feed him/herself with knowledge on a subject. Most schools in the
developed countries are privileged with well equipped libraries where students can get
almost any book they need for a course.

In the developing countries, however, the story is different. Most students don’t have
access to the Internet, and most of the schools either have poorly equipped libraries or
no libraries at all.
Students greatly need textbooks to supplement what they are being taught in class.
Lectures are always like guides, and it is only through textbooks that a student can get
deeper into a course. For courses like those directly concerned with Maths, Language
and Literature, learning without a text is almost an impossibility.

If the financial situation of the family is too bad, a child has the option of going in for
second-handed textbooks. These, in most cases, cost less than 50% of the original, or a
brand new copy. Some parents prefer borrowing a textbook and making photocopies,
either in whole or parts, for their children. In most cases, this is not legal and goes
against the author’s rights.

Whatever the case, parents most understand that textbooks contribute to the student’s
success and have to be given due consideration.
Handbook

A handbook from 1874A handbook is a type of reference work, or other collection of

instructions, that is intended to provide ready reference].

MEANING

A handbook is sometimes referred to as a vade mecum (Latin, "go with me") or

pocket reference that is intended to be carried at all times. However, this term is now
considered to be archaic and is not in general use any more.

Handbooks may deal with any topic, and are generally compendiums of information
in a particular field or about a particular technique. They are designed to be easily
consulted and provide quick answers in a certain area. For example, the MLA
Handbook for Writers of Research Papers is a reference for how to cite works in MLA
style, among other things.

"Handbook" is sometimes applied to documents that are produced within an

organization that are not designed for publication—such as a company handbook for
HR, for instance. In this case, the term is used nearly synonymously with "manual."
The name "handbook" may sometimes be applied to reference works that are not
pocket-sized, but do provide ready reference, as is the case with several engineering
handbooks such as Perry's Chemical Engineers' Handbook, Marks Standard
Handbook for Mechanical Engineers, and the CRC Handbook of Chemistry and
Physics. Handbooks are widely used in the sciences as quick references for various
kinds of data.

DEFINITION

Handbook is the concise manual or reference book providing specific information or

instruction about a substance or place.

The Importance Of Employee Handbooks To Protect Against Lawsuits

Overview: A number of court cases have confirmed that businesses can help protect
themselves from liabilities and damages from employee lawsuits by providing clear,
written policies, addressing the rights and responsibilities of their employees. We have
seen a dramatic increase in employment-related litigation involving our clients, much
of which could have been prevented. While an employment handbook will not
necessarily prevent employment-related litigation in all cases, it can significantly
reduce the risk of same, by clearly addressing the rights and responsibilities of
employees in important issues such as discrimination, sexual harassment, wage and
hour, overtime and complaint resolution.
 JOURNAL CONTENT

The Case of the Field Trip Disaster

1. Loucrecia Collins
2. Joseph Redcross
Abstract

For decades, the instructional field trip has been viewed as a strategy to enhance
students’ learning experiences. Yet what happens when an award-winning teacher is
accused of choking a student while on a field trip? Tempers flare among community
members, parents contact the police, and the principal is assigned the daunting task of
investigating a staff member for assault and battery. This case study provides an
opportunity for aspiring principals to analyze legal challenges posed by the
supervision of students during instructional field trips. In addition, students will
explore school board and site-based school policies regarding field trips and examine
guidelines regarding due process for teachers. Finally, an analysis of the principal’s
relationship with the teacher’s union representative will help prepare future
administrators in working with negotiated contracts.

Journal of Science Education and Technology © 2001 Springer.

Abstract
Two important content areas associated with informal environmental science
programs are ecology/natural science topics and awareness of environmental
problems/issues. This study attempted to evaluate which of these content areas may
provide a more optimum learning experience. A quantitative analysis was conducted
on two field trips to a science center that represented an ecological oriented program
and an environmental issue presentation. Two variables that were chosen as indicators
of program success--knowledge retention and attitude change--are outcomes that have
been found prevalent in informal, environmental science education. These programs
were administered and evaluated during the 1996/1997 school year at the Paul H.
Douglas Environmental Science Center at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. The
results of this study showed significant gains in science related knowledge following
both the ecology and issue oriented treatments. The data indicate that the focus of the
program (ecology or issues) did not significantly alter the way students responded to
the knowledge section of the evaluation instrument. Results showed little impact on
students' affect toward park site or related subject matter following either presentation
type. Authors recommend multiple research methods to better evaluate affect changes
following an informal environmental science experience.
RESEARCH ABSTRACT

ERIC Identifier: ED265013

Publication Date: 1985-00-00
Author: Blosser, Patricia E.
Source: ERIC Clearinghouse for Science Mathematics and Environmental Education
Columbus OH.

Research Related to Instructional Materials for Science. ERIC/SMEAC Science

Education Digest No. 2.

Instructional techniques are important, but the use of instructional materials also
influences student achievement, use of process skills, and other outcomes. Instructional
materials provide the physical media through which the intents of the curriculum are
experienced (Talmadge & Eash, 1979). A 1976 survey conducted by the National Survey
and Assessment of Instructional Materials contained data indicating that students are
involved in learning activities with instructional materials more than 90 percent of the
time in classrooms (Talladge & Eash, 1979).

STUDIES OF SCIENCE CURRICULA

A number of studies have been conducted to assess the impact of innovative science
curricula. One study was reported in Walberg's "A Meta-Analysis of Productive Factors
in Science Learning Grades 6 Through 12" (1980). In a chapter entitled "Science
Curriculum Effects in High School: A Quantitative Synthesis," Weinstein and others
reported on the examination of 33 studies involving 19,149 junior and senior high school
students in the United States, Great Britain, and Israel in order to assess the impact of
innovative pre-college science curricula of the past 20 years on achievement. Weinstein et
al. confined their examination to those studies involving nationally developed innovative
science programs. The 33 research studies they reviewed involved 13 different curricula,
8 at the senior high level and 5 at the junior high school level (Weinstein, 1980). The
reviewers looked at (1) conceptual learning, (2) inquiry skills, (3) attitudinal
development, (4) laboratory performance, (5) concrete skills (i.e., classification of
properties represented by pictorial stimuli). Weinstein and his colleagues differentiated
between concrete skills and inquiry skills as follows "...Unlike inquiry skills, concrete
skills require only observation and classification of directly perceived objects or pictures.
Inquiry skills require some form of hypothetical-deductive reasoning as in Piagetian
formal operations..." (Weinstein, 1980).

It has been suggested that outcomes of research favoring the innovative treatment are due
to the use of tests biased in favor of the treatment. Weinstein et al. developed a method of
analysis that would take such a possible factor into account. They reported a ratio of
approximately 4:1 in favor of outcomes related to the use of innovative curricula,
concluding:

Although great national interest in science curricula by the general public and
professional educators may have abated in the 1970s, the post-Sputnic (1958) curricula
produced beneficial effects on science learning that extended across science subjects in
secondary schools, types of students, various types of cognitive and affective outcomes,
and the experimental rigor of the research. Past reviews showed the percentage of positive
results; but the present analysis shows a moderate 12 point percentile advantage on all
learning measures of average student performance in the innovative courses (Weinstein,
1980, p. J12).

Bredderman confined his analysis to studies involving the use of one of the three major
activity-based elementary school science programs: Elementary Science Study (ESS),
Science--A Process Approach (SAPA), or the Science Curriculum Improvement Study
(SCIS) (1983). Bredderman also used meta-analysis to compare data from 57 studies
involving 13,000 students and more than 900 classrooms. He reported, "The overall
effects of the activity based programs on all outcome areas combined were clearly
positive, although not dramatically so" (Bredderman, 1983, p. 504). Thirty-two percent of
the 400 comparisons favored the activity-based programs at least, the .05 level of
significance. The mean effect size on all studies was .35, indicating about a 14 percentile
improvement for the average student as a result of being in the activity-based program
group (Bredderman, 1983). The outcome areas Bredderman identified for his analysis
included (1) science process, (2) intelligence, (3) creativity, (4) affective, (5) perception,
(6) logical development, (7) language, (8) science content, and (9) mathematics. The use
of activity-based programs appeared to promote student achievement in all analyzed
outcome areas with the exception of logical development (Bredderman, 1983).

Bredderman speculated that if activity-based programs in elementary school science were

adopted across a wide variety of districts, student performance on tests of science process,
creativity, and perhaps intelligence would show increases of 10-20 percentile units;
reading and mathematics scores might be positively affected; and attitude toward science
and science classes probably would show a small improvement. Student performance on
standardized achievement tests in science content might go up slightly (Bredderman,
1983). However, if the students do not continue in such activity-based programs in the
higher grades, these advantages are not sustained, accordng to the few follow-up studies
Bredderman reviewed.

Bredderman concluded:

The accumulating evidence on the science curriculum reform efforts of the past two or
three decades consistently suggests that more activity-process-based approaches to
teaching science result in gains over traditional methods in a wide range of student
outcomes at all grade levels (Bredderman, 1983).

Bredderman's remarks are echoed by Shymansky, Kyle and Alport in an article in the
JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN SCIENCE TEACHING (1983) in which they reported on
their portion of the large meta-analysis project coordinated at the University of Colorado.
Shymansky and his students analyzed 105 experimental studies on more than 45,000
students, involving 27 different innovative science curricula. In their analysis Shymansky
et al. grouped 18 student performance criteria into six clusters; (1) achievement-
fact/recall, synthesis/analysis/evaluation, general achievement; (2) perceptions -- attitude
toward subject, toward science, toward teaching techniques, toward self; (3) process
skills-process measures/skills/techniques, methods of science; (4) analytic skills -- critical
thinking, problem solving; (5) related skills -- reading, mathematics, social studies,
communication skills; and (6) other areas -- creativity, logical thinking (Piagetian tasks),
spatial relations (Piagetian tasks) (Shymansky, 1983).

They reported, "...Across all new science curricula analyzed, students exposed to new
science curricula performed better than students in traditional courses in general
achievement, analytic skills, process skills, and related skills (reading, mathematics social
studies, and communication), as well as developing a more positive attitude toward
science..." (Shymansky, 1983, p. 387). The new science curricula had a positive impact
on student performance for every performance criterion except student self-concept
(Shymansky, 1983). The reviewers speculated that self-concept that was measured by the
various investigators was a global construct rather than a subject-specific one and, if so,
the global self-concept probably would not change dramatically over the length of the
treatment involved in the study.

Shymansky, Kyle, and Alport examined the meta-analysis data by science content area,
reporting:

--for life science, students had more positive attitudes about science than those in the
standard health and life science program;

--for physical science, students performed better, except for analytic skills;

--for general science, students performed significantly better than those enrolled in
traditional programs;

--for earth science, student performance on process and analytic skills was positive but
gains were not as large as for biology and physics. This was the only science content area
for which positive achievement results were not achieved.
--for biology, the mean effect sizes were consistently high. Student performance in the
analytic thinking area was higher than for chemistry and approached the performance
level of physics.

--for chemistry, this content area exhibited the least impact of the new science curricula in
terms of enhanced student performance;

--for physics, student performance was second only to biology in overall pattern of
positive effect sizes. Students in new physics courses effectively gained at least one-half
year of study (as compared to students in traditional courses) in terms of physics
achievement and analytic thinking skills (Shymansky, 1983). In an article in THE
AMERICAN BIOLOGY TEACHERS (1984), Shymansky further elaborated on the
meta-analysis data related to the use of the Biological Sciences Curriculum Study (BSCS)
materials. Data involving BSCS classes constituted the bulk of the codable data for
biology and involved 6,035 students and five versions of BSCS materials: Yellow, Blue,
Green, special materials, and advanced materials. The BSCS program was effective in
enhancing student attitudes toward science, process skills, analytic skills, and
achievement -- in that order (Shymansky, 1984). When student gender was considered,
students in mixed classes responded more favorably to BSCS biology than those in
predominantly male classes, outscoring their peers in traditional courses by 30 percentile
points over all performance measures (Shymansky, 1984). High-IQ, high ability students
showed the greatest gains in response to BSCS biology. Students from schools with over
2,000 pupils responded more favorably to BSCS biology than did those from smaller
schools. BSCS programs were most effective when implemented in suburban schools,
only slightly less effective in urban schools, but did not fare as well in rural areas
(Shymansky, 1984).

SCIENCE TEXTBOOKS

In many science classes the textbook is the primary instructional material. No meta-
analysis of the use of textbooks compared to non-textbook courses were identified for this
Digest. However, the analysis of text materials was a major focus of a symposium held in
Boulder, Colorado, in 1980, and reported in RESEARCH IN SCIENCE EDUCATION:
NEW QUESTIONS, NEW DIRECTIONS (1981). (Other focus areas were investigating
science understanding and investigating science classrooms.) Participants suggested that
it is important to design and carry out field experiments to show connections between
textbooks and schooling outcomes. This could be done via case studies.

One of the symposium participants, Deese, contended that pupils never learn how to cope
with expository texts. His thesis is that textbooks are written rather than spoken. Children
have mastered spoken language when they come to school. Their initial encounters are
with print written in expressive language closely resembling speech. Children gradually
acquire the ability to deal with narrative text of concrete description. About the time they
begin reading texts containing abstractions, formal instruction in reading ceases
(Robinson, 1981). According to Deese:

Readers who are going to be the scientists, lawyers, and professional persons of all kinds
in the future must learn to understand dense prose, prose in which what modifies what is
hard to discover, and what needs to be inferred is not easy to determine. For someone
who has not been prepared for this intellectual exercise, it is an impossible task
(Robinson, 1981, p. 67).

Other suggestions for needed research on instructional materials were identified by

participants.

IN CONCLUSION

Data exist to support the idea that the science curriculum improvement project materials
develped after 1955 were successful in promoting student achievement in the use of
science process skills, in creativity, in higher cognitive skills at both the elementary and
secondary school levels. Research has been focused on programs rather than on
textbooks, however. Because teaching from, and with, textbooks is the dominant method
of instruction in many science classes, research is needed on how students learn to use
textbooks in order to become independent learners, how teachers use textbooks, as well as
on how to write textbooks in order to promote efficent learning.
 A SEMINAR ON

FIELD TRIP,
INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS
TEXT BOOK AND HAND BOOKS

Submitted to:
Mrs. Renju
Lecturer
Vijaya college of nursing

Submitted by:
Aswathy S K
1st MSc nursing
Vijaya college of nursing
Bibliography

1. K.P. Neeraja, Textbook of Nursing Education, 1st edition, 2003, Jaypee

brothers, Newdelhi p.no:34 to 40.
2. B.T, Basavanthappa, Nursing Education, 2st edition 2009, Jaypee
brothers, New delhi. P no.126-144
3. B.D Bhatt, S.R.Sharma, “Educational Administration”, Kanishka
Publishers, 1st education 1992,
4. B Sankara narayan, B Sindhu. Teaching and Learning Nursing , Jaypee
brothers ,Newdelhi

Journels

Journel of nursing education

Net references

1. www.wikipedia.com
2. www.pubmed.com
3. Helinet
4. www.indiannursingcouncil.org