Why Should Students Be Allowed To Read Comics?

Comic books have found their way back to the lives of today’s kids. You must remember the days when you found comic books and graphic novels facilitating.

Studies today reinforce the fact that comic books and graphic novels not only interest young readers but also make difficult concepts easier for them to understand. The interesting graphic representation of otherwise boring and intimidating texts captivate young readers and invite them to devour each page with sheer motivation to move to proceed further.

To understand the effectiveness of the same, try making your child read a simple maths word problem once and give them the same problem to solve through a graphic representation. Their obvious pick of the latter is due to ease of understanding and simplicity. Not only are comic books easy to read, they indeed motivate kids to learn more and at a quicker pace.

The following are some reasons why students should be permitted to read comics:

1. Improves memory skills

The world has taken to media and visual literacy. Under such scenarios, a reluctant English reader/writer would benefit much from comics as compared to typical textbooks. Those who are learning English as an additional language or tend to be reluctant readers and writers can use the comic book format that not only provides engaging storyline visuals but also serves as a tool for prediction, memory access, and revision in language acquisition.

2. Gateway to higher order literacy

Comic books are a great gateway to reading. They are fun and easily accessible by even the most reluctant of readers. Comic books can be a gateway to learning, however more complex aspects such as character amalgamation, prediction and analysis come into play in graphic novels like Kill Shakespeare because they introduce ideas like characters being fictitious while there also seems to be discrepancies between these fictitious characters and the real people who inspired them.

3. Sets non-linear storytelling into motion

Comic book writers often construct story arcs, which take a long time to come together. This demands from the readers to take a serial approach and long for a few weeks for the next edition of their favourite comics. Charles Dickens did a similar thing. This offers the reader some time to reflect on the story surrounding the novel that he or she is reading; even if the text is presented in a linear narrative text-to-image presentation, one can expect the story arc to transition from past to present, and to the future in the same narrative.

4. Helps expand imagination

The world of screens has restricted imagination for children today. Besides, the countless boundaries and limitations imposed on them do not let them wonder much beyond reality and what they are fed by others. Comic books and graphic novels, in such a setting, allow room for encouraged imagination. The traits and personalities of comic characters offer a sense of anticipation of what may take place next to or with them. Especially the gap between the publications of the next edition or chapter of such graphic novels or comic books helps young readers to imagine and think of possible outcomes.

5. Facilitates easy character sketch and development

Try this experiment with any kid from elementary or middle school. Have them sketch out a character, and most will not only draw a picture, but also give the one they are drawing a background story. Comic books offer various examples of how characters are developed, as well as what can happen during the creation of said characters when they’re introduced to new locations or realize that they have to take on new roles. Stories also introduce questions about what happens when there is an antagonist present who wants to cause trouble for the protagonist, who must figure out whether the protagonist should fight back against their enemy or let go and give up. These comic book stories demonstrate how advanced writing techniques work and how readers can develop their skills by using tools from different written works such as novels or other types of literature.

Besides the above mentioned direct perks of reading comic books and graphic novels, there are several other benefits of them including ideas for writing, easy grasping of concepts, etc. As one of the top schools in Bengaluru, we, at MS Dhoni Global School, encourage our students to find decent interest in age-appropriate comic books and graphic novels.