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Changing Horizons in Geography Education - HERODOT Network ...

Changing Horizons in Geography Education - HERODOT Network ...

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formulated one of key pr<strong>in</strong>ciples <strong>in</strong> teach<strong>in</strong>g geography – the pr<strong>in</strong>ciple of visualization(Okoń, 1987). As much as 83% of all <strong>in</strong>formation is assimilated through thesense of sight (Łasiński, 2000). Therefore visualization should underlie all presentation.Accord<strong>in</strong>g to Jay (2000) an image acts better that words s<strong>in</strong>ce it is faster, savestime, is more efficient and easier to memorize at the same time enabl<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>directobservation of the questions discussed.Verbal and non-verbal communicationNowadays a lot of attention is given to communication. Communications, or peopletalk<strong>in</strong>g to each other, is made up of verbal and non-verbal messages. A school is aplace particularly suited for this purpose. Both teachers and students send variousmessages. Strykowski et. al. (2003) suggest extend<strong>in</strong>g teacher’s competencies bycommunication, media and technology competencies. Ignorance and the <strong>in</strong>ability to<strong>in</strong>terpret messages may create a number of difficult didactic situations.The first of these messages discussed, verbal, is of a l<strong>in</strong>guistic variety. Thelanguage register may be literary, colloquial or scientific. Besides language othercrucial elements <strong>in</strong>clude associations, choice of words and correct syntax (Łasiński,2000). Depend<strong>in</strong>g on educational level and the syllabus the teacher conveys <strong>in</strong>formationof geographical environment adjust<strong>in</strong>g it to the perception potential of students.Łasiński (2000) believes that the method of lectur<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>fluences the process ofcommunication up to 30%, its elements be<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>tonation, force and speed of speechas well as pauses between sentences, the pitch of voice, articulation and any dialects,if applicable. Many different methods may be used <strong>in</strong> order to emphasize the characterof presentation: strengthen<strong>in</strong>g or weaken<strong>in</strong>g the volume of voice, suspend<strong>in</strong>g,accelerat<strong>in</strong>g or slow<strong>in</strong>g down the speed of read<strong>in</strong>g, modulat<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>tonation or lengthen<strong>in</strong>gwords. The speech must be loud and clear, <strong>in</strong>tonation should be melodious, thetempo and volume of voice diversified; mumbl<strong>in</strong>g, shorten<strong>in</strong>g syllables or speak<strong>in</strong>gthrough the nose are not recommended; also vocabulary should be varied. Presentationbecomes then more expressive both to listeners and the speaker.Pauses play an <strong>in</strong>terest<strong>in</strong>g and important role <strong>in</strong> presentations (Detz, 2004; Heigl,2004). Moments of silence are recommended <strong>in</strong> the course of the lecture to make itpossible for listeners to absorb contents and, at the same time, to observe the visualsshown. It is the pauses that make the presentation suggestive and vivid. On the otherhand, a non-verbal message is an <strong>in</strong>tegral process which, accord<strong>in</strong>g to Pease (2004)and Łasiński (2000), <strong>in</strong>volves body language, which consists of:• facial expression• gestures• body posture• eye contact• non-verbal aspect of speech; tone of voice, rhythm, stress, speed of speech• <strong>in</strong>voluntary physiological reactions• physical appearance• personal distance and• space (physical surround<strong>in</strong>gs)55

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