Document nmLM8deR1OgqY6vGo6kwM9o6X

Direct experience is the best teacher Looking, listening, smelling, tasting, touch ing, and manipulating stamp realism and meaning into a communication, and make a training program a learning program These direct experiences frequently cannot be used because of practical considerations -- lack of time, money, or skill The communicator must, therefore, use more abstract means -- sometimes contrived, reconstructed, or simulated Audio-visuals are more than mere aids to communication, they are the medium of com munication itself Hence the name, "audio visual media " Effectiveness of Audio-Visual Media Fic 10-1 --Direct, actual experience "rings the bell " In measuring the impact of a presentation, the more concrete the medium of communication is, the more effective it is "Audio-visuals" encompass several dozen communications tools, ranging from purely audio aids (such as recordings and amplifying systems) to purely visual aids (such as silent films and posters) The bulk, of course, depend on both sound and sight Audio-visuals serve as a communications media for transmitting messages used to in form, persuade, inspire, and entertain people, and to solve problems They are the bndge through which a message travels between a sender and a receiver--between safetymen and management, between safetymen and workers, between management and workers and safetymen When a communications gap exists, it is usually not because there is nothing to say, it is usually because the right message did not get to the right person m the right way One should be aware of the range of audio visual resources and their appropriateness both to transmitting the message content and to appealing to and reaching the other person or the audience Figure 10-1 rates various communications media on a relative scale of concrete-toabstract experience The more concrete the communication, the more effective it is Mere words and sentences, whether spoken or written, not only provide relatively little meaning, but can often be misconstrued by the other person or persons Designing a communication, or a training program, to take advantage of more concrete resources, as they are needed, takes more ability than merely knowing the subject matter It de mands an ability to use audio-visual media effectively, and to know when each can be most effective Another advantage for using audio-visual media is that it is estimated that about 90 per cent of learning takes place through simul taneous use of seeing and hearing In ad dition to this reason, both management and workers are exposed to movies and television constantly, and they actually expect the use of audio-visual media Frequently, too much is expected of audio visual materials Just having an audio-visual available is not sufficient justification for This chapter was revised by A M Baltzer, based on reviews by selected members of the National Safety Council 217