VISUAL ARGUMENT - GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS ARE SUPERIOR TO OUTLINES IN IMPROVING LEARNING FROM TEXT

Most research on graphic organizers (i.e., figural organizations of te xt information) has failed to simulate actual classroom learning. Typi cally, studies have used short, poorly organized text, single graphic organizers, and immediate tests measuring only factual knowledge. Also , there is no convincing evidence that graphic organizers are better t han outlines. Two experiments were conducted that represented attempts to address these problems in answering the question, ''What types of text information do graphic organizers and outlines help college stude nts learn?'' Results revealed that when given enough time, students st udying graphic organizers learned more hierarchical and coordinate rel ations, and as a result, they were more successful in applying that kn owledge and in writing integrated essays than students studying outlin es or text alone. These findings are discussed in terms of efficient i ndexing through visual argument.