Understanding the Media
The word media comes from the Latin medius, which literally means ‘middle’, ‘intermediate’, or ‘introduction’. More specifically, the notion of media in teaching and learning tends to be interpreted as graphical tools, photographic, or electronically to capture, process, and to reconstruct the visual or verbal information. AECT (Association of Education and Communication Technology, 1977) defines as all forms of media and channels used separately convey the message or information. Besides as a messenger or delivery system, the media is often replaced with the word mediator according to Fleming (1987: 234) is a cause or a tool that intervened in the two parties and reconcile. By the term mediator, the media shows the function or role, ie set up an effective relationship between the two main parties in the learning process, namely the students and the content of lessons. In summary, the media is a tool that convey or deliver messages of teaching. (Arsyad, 2003: 3)
Media Function
Levie & Lentz proposed four functions of teaching media, especially visual media, namely (a) the functions of attention, (b) affective functions, (c) cognitive function, and (d) compensatory function.
Media attention is a core function, namely attracting and directing attention to the students to concentrate on the content associated with the displayed visual meaning or subject matter accompanying text.
Affective functions of visual media can be seen from the level of student enjoyment when learning (or reading) the text is illustrated. Read more
