The Role of Posters in Teacher Education Programs - By Justina O. Osa and Linda R. Musser

Oct 15, 2026

Posters play a largely unrecognized yet powerful role in teacher education and learning environments. The paper argues that education libraries often treat posters as decoration rather than instructional media, despite their visual appeal and capacity to stimulate attention, memory, and unconscious learning. It explains how teacher preparation program resources influence teacher competence, then links poster use to supporting diverse learners through effective instructional strategies. It also outlines poster selection guidance and example learning-poster types, emphasizing their inclusion in library collections.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages6

Reading Time15 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

The role of posters in teacher education programs

Teacher education program quality and instructional resources

The role of education libraries

Posters - An often neglected type of instructional material

Visual learning rationale

Why posters may be overlooked

Types of learning posters

Concept or thing posters

The Role of Posters in Teacher Education Programs By Justina O. Osa and Linda R. Musser Pennsylvania State University Abstract Posters abound in education libraries as decorative objects yet few libraries realize the educational potential of the poster. Posters are colorful, attractive learning media which can enhance the learning environment. This paper describes the value of posters in the educational setting, offers suggestions on selecting posters for learning, and includes examples of various types of learning posters. The competence of teachers is contingent to a large extent on the quality of the teacher education program that prepared them. The quality of the resources that support the teacher education program has been recognized as a crucial determinant of the quality of the knowledge and skills which the prospective teachers store in their repertoire.1 The National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), a body charged with ensuring the quality of teachers, suggests in an article “What to Look for in a Teacher Preparation Program” that oneof the questions to ask in choosing a good teacher education program is “Does the institution have the resources necessary to support each of the programs it offers?”2 Furthermore, teachers are progressively being held accountable for student learning. Teachers have to devise ways and adopt teaching strategies that match the learning styles of all the students in a class. The acceptable practice is for teachers to carefully select instructional materials and activities that will stimulate all students’ brains and facilitate effective learning for all students. When there is a fit across materials, teaching methods, teachers, and learners, learning for students is enhanced. The role of the education library in this process is to provide materials that will enable teachers to prepare and present curricular topics in a variety of ways, making learning possible for all students, irrespective of their social, ethnic or cultural background, their ability, or learning style. Faculty in teacher education programs need to have access to such resources in order to demonstrate their use to teachers-intraining. These demonstrations typically occur in method courses during which faculty model methods of: 􀁸 integrating curriculum and instruction materials into teaching; 􀁸 creating learning environment that encourages active engagement in learning and self-motivation; 􀁸 creating learning opportunities that are adapted to the needs of diverse learners; 􀁸 using a variety of instructional strategies to encourage students’ development of critical thinking, problem solving, and performance skills; 􀁸 devising different approaches to make the learning materials, especially complex materials, learnable to all students; and 􀁸 providing the opportunity for students to interact with information to be learned in diverse and different ways. Posters – An Often Neglected Type of Instructional Material According to Jensen, “our eyes register about 36,000 visual images per hour, while the retina alone supplies 40% of all nerve fibers that are connected to the brain; 90% of the brain’s sensory input is from visual sources.”3 Researchers report that the visual sense is responsible for 90% of brain stimulation4 and that vision and visual memory take up to two-thirds of the brain.5 Since the absorption of knowledge is the key to success in any educational system, it follows that education libraries should have collections rich in visual materials. A visit to any education library will confirm the fact that education librarians are aware of the need to build collections of visually stimulating resources. In addition to text books, curriculum guides, instructional materials, and juvenile books, one can find videos, manipulatives, kits, Education Libraries Volume 27, No. 1 Summer 2004 16 dioramas, multimedia, and e-media. A closer look at the collection, however, will li

FAQs

Why does the paper emphasize posters in education libraries?

Posters are presented as colorful, attractive learning media that can enhance the learning environment and support educational goals. The paper notes that many libraries overlook their educational potential.

How do posters support teacher education and effective teaching?

The paper connects teacher competence to the quality of teacher education resources and argues that teachers need instructional materials that fit diverse learning styles. Posters are positioned as visual resources that help create stimulating learning conditions.

What challenges contribute to posters being overlooked as learning tools?

The paper suggests posters are inexpensive, so cost is unlikely the reason. Instead, it points to limitations in the amount of information posters deliver and the lack of sufficient attention in educational literature and databases.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by pixelkiddo