Why is a Picture Comparison Interactive Medium Used?

17 at processing words and some people are better at processing pictures Mayer Massa, 2003. The first verbal-visual model was introduced by Paivio 1986, namely a dual coding theory. In this study, learners are described as either visualizers or verbalizers. Visualizers tend to focus on imagery-based information such as pictures and diagrams, whereas verbalizers prefer to focus on verbal information such as texts or spoken narrations. Paivio’s theory of dual coding claims that strong associative activation of mental imagery facilitates memory for words, and these two processes – one verbal symbolic codes and one visual analogue codes were separable in memory. The structural assumptions of dual coding can be summarized in Figure 2.2, which illustrates the idea of separate but interconnected systems. Figure 2.2 A Schematic Depiction of Verbal and Nonverbal Symbolic Systems by Paivio, 1990 18 The figure shows that the symbolic systems are connected to sensory input and response output systems. From the figure, Paivio tries to explain that there is an equal weight to verbal and nonverbal processing. As Paivio 1986, p. 53 states, “Human cognition is unique in that it has become specialized for dealing simultaneously with language and with nonverbal object s and events”. This theory notes that there are two cognitive subsystems, one is for dealing with nonverbal objects and the other is for processing languages. The verbal and nonverbal representations differ in their internal representation formed in the long-term memory. Whereas, the nonverbal information will be processed into imagens, the verbal information is more likely to be encoded into logogens. Then, according to Paivio 1990, these two internal codes are interconnected by referential links so that they can activate each other. For example, the word mango could activate a mental image of a mango tree. In this case, we can note that verbal and nonverbal information may yield a propositional representation as well as an analogical representation by constructing a mental image for concrete words. As what is mentioned in Zheng 2009, Ainsworth emphasizes her functional taxonomy of multiple external representations. She proposes that every representation has different functional roles for learning and support knowledge differently. She categorizes these roles into three groups; First, visual and verbal representations may have complementary roles in instructions by facilitating different cognitive processes, serving different learning objectives, or addressing individual representational preferences of different learners. Second, they can constrain interpretations and guide learners’ reasoning about a domain. Third, visual and verbal representations together might be suited to foster deeper understanding