The Importance, Types, Selection Criteria, and Stages of Educational Aids

Concept of Educational Aids: These are all materials, tools, programs, machines, devices, equipment, educational situations, and verbal language used by the teacher in teaching and the learner in learning to acquire educational experiences in all fields, in order to achieve the desired educational goals and to reach more effective and efficient learning.

• Materials: such as maps, transparencies, tapes, etc.
• Programs: such as what is broadcast on open radio, computer programs, etc.
• Machines, Devices, and Equipment: such as computers, projectors, copiers, etc.
• Tools: such as the blackboard, laboratory tools, etc.
• Situations: Internal, like experiments and demonstrations, or external, like trips and visits.
• Verbal Language: such as stories, proverbs, lowering and raising the voice, etc.

Importance of Using Educational Aids:

1. Addresses verbal deficiencies in teaching.
2. Makes learning deeper and more lasting.
3. Expands the fields of experience for learners.
4. Influences behavioral attitudes and scientific and social concepts.
5. Develops a love for cooperation, keen observation, problem-solving, and self-reliance.
6. Arouses student interest and motivates them for active participation inside and outside the classroom.
7. Overcomes individual differences among students.
8. Overcomes the limitations of time and space, and saves effort.

Types of Educational Aids:

1. Auditory aids: such as recorders, school radio, etc.
2. Visual aids: such as various types of blackboards, projectors, trips, exhibitions, etc.
3. Audiovisual aids: television, seminars, computers, etc.

Sources of Educational Aids:

1. Inside the educational institution: such as laboratories, libraries, playgrounds, theaters, etc.
2. Outside the educational institution: such as public libraries, parks, mosques, factories, etc.

Criteria for Selecting an Educational Aid:

1. Suitability for Islamic teachings and the students' level.
2. Suitability for educational objectives, time, and place.
3. Its quality, correspondence to reality, and the sequence of its ideas.
4. Scientific accuracy, modernity, and clarity of sound and image.
5. Attracts students' attention and motivates them to participate (engagement).
6. Economical in cost, time, effort, and maintenance.
7. Considers safety and security aspects.

Stages of Using Educational Aids:

A- Preparation Stage includes:

1. Preparing the aid.
2. Drawing up a work plan.
3. Creating a suitable climate for the learner.

B- Usage Stage includes:

1. Preparing the students' minds.
2. Choosing the appropriate time.
3. Involving the students.

C- Evaluation Stage includes:

1. Evaluating the students.
2. Evaluating the aid.

Obstacles to Using Educational Aids:

1. Weak conviction in the importance of the aid among some.
2. Lack of knowledge about the sources of aids among some.
3. Absence of lab technicians and shortage of materials, tools, and devices in some schools.
4. Lack of proficiency in using them and poor prior planning for their use by some.
5. Unwillingness to innovate and develop among some.
6. Few training courses for teachers on aids.
7. Lengthy curricula.
8. Lack of suitable places for their use.

Ways to Overcome Obstacles:

1. General awareness and highlighting the importance of aids, and conducting training programs for teachers.
2. Studying curricula and courses and adding the necessary educational aids to achieve their objectives.
3. Providing suitable places and specialists for laboratories and aids.
4. Allocating a percentage of the school's income to provide and maintain some aids.

The Chalkboard

Definition: It is the traditional tool that is rarely absent from any educational institution, occupying a large area of the front wall of the classroom. Key specifications include being a board of wood or plastic painted black or green, with a size suitable for the classroom, and it can be fixed or movable.

Importance of the Chalkboard:

1. Clarifies some facts and ideas.
2. Helps in presenting the lesson in a graded manner.
3. Allows for displaying samples of students' work.
4. Enables performing some calculations or drawings, etc.

Rules for Using the Chalkboard:

1. Pay attention to its cleanliness.
2. Write clearly in straight lines in an organized and coordinated manner.
3. Be as concise as possible with the written information.
4. Avoid writing on the top and bottom parts of the board as much as possible.
5. Do not explain while writing.
6. Do not stand in front of the board.
7. Use good quality chalk in multiple colors.
8. Prepare the tools the teacher needs for drawing and sketching on the board.
9. Ensure the room's lighting is good.

Types of Chalkboards:

1. The regular (fixed) board.
2. The double-sided (flip) board.
3. The movable board with a stand.
4. The sliding board.
5. The board with a curtain.
6. The plastic board.
7. The wall-mounted board.

Advantages of the Chalkboard:

1. Low cost and ease of use and transport.
2. Provides a wide scope for students to follow the subject matter and its details.
3. Attracts students' attention to the lesson topic.
4. Helps the teacher and student acquire good handwriting skills.

Disadvantages of the Chalkboard:

1. Rigidity and traditional presentation of the material.
2. Does not allow the teacher to monitor students while writing.
3. Exposure to some health hazards from chalk dust.
4. The board gets marred with frequent use.

Illustrative Drawings

Concept: Shapes used by the teacher to simplify concepts of the subject matter or some of its contents, such as geographical drawings, science diagrams, etc.

Use: Used in all areas of the educational curriculum, with some subjects like engineering, science, and geography using them extensively.

Advantages of Illustrative Drawings:

1. Arouses student interest and develops their ability for distinction and production.
2. Clarifies scientific material in the form of drawings.
3. Helps the student understand facts and information and retain them for a longer period.
4. Transforms abstract experiences into tangible ones.
5. Helps in using time appropriately.

Methods of Preparing Illustrative Drawings:

1. Enlargement of various kinds.
2. The color printer (spirit duplicator).
3. Transparency.
4. The flannel board.
5. Models.
6. Maps.
7. Graphs.
8. Posters and display boards.

Steps for Enlargement by Squares:

1. Identify the material to be enlarged.
2. Divide the material into vertical and horizontal centimeters.
3. Number the vertical and horizontal squares.
4. Determine the enlargement ratio.
5. Transfer the squares to the drawing paper.
6. Draw the lines and shapes according to the sequence of the squares.
7. Write the drawing's data.
8. Color the drawing.

The Magic Lantern (Slide Projector)

Components:

1. A powerful lamp.
2. A concave mirror.
3. A holder.
4. A mirror to receive the rays.
5. A set of lenses to disperse the rays.
6. A fan.
7. A handle to move the holder.

Weight: 0.72 kg

Dimensions: 17 × 24 cm

ISBN: 978-9957-12-135-8