Inside Higher Ed has an article on professors at business schools using comics or graphic novels to teach business concepts.
Jeremy Short's students at Texas Tech's business school read and discuss Atlas Black: Managing to Succeed as a means of learning business basics. The text was written by folks at Portland State and Auburn, along with Short. A professor at the University of Vermont uses these texts as well. The University of South Carolina's Thomas Moliterno does too.
I'm not sure if these Atlas books are comic books or graphic novels. They're called graphic novels in the article but seem to have the shape and feel of the pamphlet-style comic books you'd see on news stands.
As well, there seems to be some lack of knowledge from the writer and his or her sources regarding the differences. Certainly the comments on Inside Higher Ed's public response area suggest a "dumbing down" is taking place rather than a simple reconstruction and presentation of the data.
It's also interesting that there is a sense that there is consensus among academics outside of education, particularly in business schools, it seems, that graphic novels are only written for entertainment. Woo that Maus, it was riot, wasn't it? That exploding giraffe head in Pride of Baghdad? Had me laughing for days. (Warning: Watch for dripping sarcasm).
I think what this suggests is the schism between what academics think constitutes "worth" and what education academics know works regarding teaching. Isn't is just a little strange and bassackwards that people responsible for teaching content material don't seem to know about how their students learn best? What's more, they get to be the authorities on what constitutes excellence in their given fields.
Jeremy Short's students at Texas Tech's business school read and discuss Atlas Black: Managing to Succeed as a means of learning business basics. The text was written by folks at Portland State and Auburn, along with Short. A professor at the University of Vermont uses these texts as well. The University of South Carolina's Thomas Moliterno does too.
I'm not sure if these Atlas books are comic books or graphic novels. They're called graphic novels in the article but seem to have the shape and feel of the pamphlet-style comic books you'd see on news stands.
As well, there seems to be some lack of knowledge from the writer and his or her sources regarding the differences. Certainly the comments on Inside Higher Ed's public response area suggest a "dumbing down" is taking place rather than a simple reconstruction and presentation of the data.
It's also interesting that there is a sense that there is consensus among academics outside of education, particularly in business schools, it seems, that graphic novels are only written for entertainment. Woo that Maus, it was riot, wasn't it? That exploding giraffe head in Pride of Baghdad? Had me laughing for days. (Warning: Watch for dripping sarcasm).
I think what this suggests is the schism between what academics think constitutes "worth" and what education academics know works regarding teaching. Isn't is just a little strange and bassackwards that people responsible for teaching content material don't seem to know about how their students learn best? What's more, they get to be the authorities on what constitutes excellence in their given fields.
Makes you want to read one of the comic books that really is just for entertainment, doesn't it? Just to escape the ironic ignorance!
At least there are some folks that are exploring this form's pedagogical potentials is classrooms outside the ELA one. Graphic novels and comics are wonderfully interdisciplinary, afterall.
4 comments:
It's always a little funny and sad when new profs show up late to the party, only to suddenly realize that they are late, and that this stuff's been going on for years :-/
Yes, and tragic that in the meantime they might have worked against the efforts of those who were quicker to the party.
UPDATE: Having been contacted by Dr. Short, I can now tell you that these books are graphic novels rather than 30-page pamphlets. I can also draw your attention to an article he co-authored on using comics in the classroom: "The Graphic novel: A 'Cool' Format for Communicating to Generation Y" in _Businees Communication Quarterly 72.4, 2009.
Hurrah for Dr. Short!
Actually, I have read two or three novels written for business students.
John Kenneth Galbraith wrote one of them -- but he intended it as a novel, not a textbook in guise of.
Careful how you refer to business profs -- some of them are my best friends.
There is certainly enough action, intrigue, skulduggery and, occasionally, honorable conduct for a graphic narrative.
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