Diagrams in Essays: Exploring the Kinds of Diagrams Students Generate and How Well They Work

Abstract

Using appropriate diagrams is generally considered efficacious in communication. However, although diagrams are extensively used in printed and digital media, people in general rarely construct diagrams to use in common everyday communication. Furthermore, instruction on diagram use for communicative purposes is uncommon in formal education and, when students are required to communicate what they have learned, the usual expectation is they will use words --not diagrams. Requiring diagram inclusion in essays, for example, would be almost unheard of. Consequently, current understanding about student capabilities in this area is very limited. The aim of this study therefore was to contribute to addressing this gap: it comprised a qualitative exploration of 12 undergraduate students’ diagram use in two essays (in which they were asked to include at least one diagram). Analysis focused on identifying the kinds of diagrams produced, and the effectiveness with which those diagrams were used. Useful functions that the diagrams served included clarification, summarization, integration of points, and provision of additional information and/or perspectives in visual form. However, there were also redundancies, as well as unclear, schematically erroneous, and overly complicated representations in some of the diagrams that the students constructed. These findings are discussed in terms of needs, opportunities, and challenges in instructional provision.