Do you ever feel; when it comes to studying, you tend to learn things quicker through diagrams and images than learning from a bunch of texts or struggling to explain your thoughts and ideas in words? If you do, then you might be a Visual learner.

I’m personally describing myself as a visual learner. I’m the type of person who understands better with images and find myself struggling when I have to explain things verbally makes it hard for me to communicate my thoughts and ideas. Then I realized that I’m not capable of learning from text and audio but surprisingly good at remembering things from images and graphics. It’s essential to understand which learning styles best suit you as it will improve your communication skills to another level, not only benefiting your studies life but also enhancing your working life too.

What is a Visual learner?
Visual learner refers to people who use graphics, diagrams, and images to express their ideas, they process information more effectively when they can see rather than hear or read it. These people tend to have a photographic memory, recalling information from colors and pictures.
Visual learners have a strong sense of balance and alignment, a strong affinity for color, and an effortless ability to imagine objects. It is most effective for visual learners to color-code their notes, create to-do lists, and use concept maps to structure their ideas.
Visual learners may struggle with learning materials that are presented primarily in written or spoken form and may find it helpful to use visual aids to supplement their learning. They also benefit from watching videos, demonstrations, models, or physical objects to help them understand concepts.

Would you prefer either pure Textual based learning or a Mixed Visual and Textual style of learning? I guess you guys might choose a Mixed style over pure textual-based. How do I know? Well, since visual images are more appealing than a bunch of text. There were several studies found: that people reacted to pictures more quickly than plain text information. Furthermore, visual aids can enhance learning on a wide range of levels.

Why is visual learning essential?
The integration of visual aids in teaching methods has changed the way educators provide information and how learners receive information; not only do visual learners benefit from visual aids, others do too. 88.5% of the teachers agreed that visual aids help stimulate students understanding and provide clear explanations for the complex language used in textbooks as it is more appealing.
Visual aid is a consistent method to enhance student understanding of literary texts. So it is the best method that could improve our teaching. (Melor et al., n.d, p. 116)

According to studies, students can pick up around 65 percent of visual information. We can assume that Visual learning helps students better understand. The students can accomplish and reach the class objectives. Therefore, advice to the students to enhance their critical thinking, decision-making, and problem-solving skills from their level of understanding.
Videos and pictures allow the students to comprehend better because they will be able to see what is happening in the literary texts. If they do not listen, they still get back on track. (Melor et al., n.d, p. 116)

Tips for effective visual learning

1. Select appropriate visual aids: you should choose visual aids that are relevant to the lesson and will help illustrate key concepts. This can include images, diagrams, charts, videos, and other multimedia.
2. Ensure visual aids are clear and visible: It’s important to ensure that visual aids are clear, large enough to be seen from the back of the classroom, and positioned in a way that all students can see them.
3. Use visual aids strategically: Visual aids should be used to support and enhance the lesson, not distract from it. Educators should be careful not to overload students with too much visual information, as this can be overwhelming.
4. Provide clear instructions: Educators should provide clear instructions on how to interact with the visual aids and how they relate to the lesson objectives.
5. Use visual aids to accommodate diverse learners: Visual aids can be particularly helpful for students who are visual or kinesthetic learners, or those who may have difficulty with traditional lecture-style instruction.

Visual learning can be a powerful way for educators to engage students and help them retain information.

What are the benefits of Visual aids?
As I have mentioned, visual aids have a significant role in education. It must be appealing and attractive and keep the learner’s attention.
Moreover, People tend to process words using short-term memory, indicating that people can only maintain small amounts of information at a time. Unlike images that will be processed using long-term memory. Here are some benefits of using visual aids:

1. Increased comprehension
   In addition, Visual aids can help to illustrate complex ideas and make them simpler to comprehend. Visual aids help clarify thoughts and ideas that are impossible through verbal communication alone by providing visual information. Moreover, some studies have discovered that visualization, including visual learners, enhanced performance in areas such as 
   • Reading Capacity 
   • Academic performance 
   • Organizing thought 
   • Communication skills
   • abilities to identify patterns and relationships 
2. Improved long-term memories
   A visual cue that is often simpler to recall than written or spoken information is provided by visual aids, which can help to increase memory recall. For those who are visual learners, this is extremely helpful. Both short-term and long-term memory store information in chunks. One of the easiest ways to guarantee that learners store information in their long-term memories is to pair concepts with meaningful visuals. Visuals aimed and aid in making sense of the subject for students, which improves the chances that they will remember the information. 
   “unless our words, concepts, and ideas are hooked onto an image, they will go in one ear, sail through the brain, and go out the other ears. Words are processed by our short-term memories where we can only retain about seven bits of information (plus or minus 2). On the other hand, images go directly into long-term memories, where they are indelibly etched” said the education consultant Dr. Lynell Burmark.
3. Improving the engagement 
   By grabbing the audience’s attention and enhancing the presentation’s interest and energy, visual aids can help to boost engagement. You will be surprised at the results, tried to add visuals to the demonstration, and your presentation will become more engaging. 
   According to studies, For about 40% of learners, images are preferable to letter information as learners can mentally interpret an experience simply by viewing a picture.
4. Provide greater accessibility
   People who are struggled with interpreting both verbal and written information, especially those who suffer from learning challenges or language limitations can be benefited from visual aids. 
   The Visual Teaching Alliance has claimed:
   • Images that endure for only 13 milliseconds after being seen by the brain. 
   • Human eyes can process 36,000 visual messages in an hour. 
   • In less than 1/10 of a second, we can grasp the meaning of a visual scene. 
   • Visual information is transmitted to the brain at a rate of 90%. 
   • The brain processes images 60,000 times more quickly than words. 
   • Retina fibers make up 40% of nerve fibers. 
     All of this suggests that people process visual information more quickly than words.
5. Better communication 
   Visual aids help provide individuals involved with a single reference point. Visual aids can facilitate better connections; Which can aid in preventing misunderstandings and ensuring that everyone is on the same page.
   In addition, Visuals can stimulate faster and stronger emotional reactions than texts: it supports learners with emotional support. This emotional response affects the learner’s memories. Textual generates a weaker and slower response than images: Photographic memories were encoded into the medial temporal lobe of the brain: where emotions were processed. The way the brain is linked makes it simple to connect emotional reactions to visual stimuli, which together create memories.
   

Conclusion
To sum up, Visual learners are people who learn best through visual aids such as images, diagrams, videos, and graphs. These individuals process information better when they can see it, rather than just hear or read it. Visual learners often have a good sense of spatial awareness and can easily visualize things in their minds.
Visual learning is a teaching method that emphasizes the use of visual aids to help students learn. This method is particularly effective for visual learners, as it engages their visual memory and allows them to better retain and recall information. Visual learning can be used in various settings, such as classrooms, online courses, and workplace training programs.
Some common techniques used in visual learning include the use of visual aids such as charts, diagrams, and infographics, as well as videos, animations, and simulations. Visual learning can also involve hands-on activities, such as creating models or drawings, which can help reinforce concepts and ideas.
It is important to note that while visual learning can be highly effective for visual learners, it may not be the best approach for all students. Different individuals have different learning styles, and it is important to consider a variety of teaching methods to ensure that all students can engage with the material and learn effectively.