The Pedagogical Power of Graphic Novels in History Education

Once lowbrow entertainment, graphic novels have become high art for modern storytelling. Audiences across multiple age groups enjoy graphic novels for their variety of topics and genres. One of the most critically acclaimed graphic novels is Art Spiegelman’s <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15195.The_Complete_Maus?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=4CUxcL9OvX&rank=2" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">Maus trilogy</a>. Maus is the memoir of Spiegelman’s Jewish father and his experience living in Nazi-occupied Poland. According to a <a href="https://www.slj.com/?detailStory=CBLDF-survey-offers-data-on-comics-use-in-schools-reveals-top-10-titles-read" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">Comic Book Legal Defense Fund survey</a>, Maus is number one on the top ten list of most-read comics in the classroom. Maus is just one case of using visual interpretation to reach a broad audience. Sid Jacobson and Ernie Colon illustrated <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/160220.The_9_11_Report?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=SJ2ljYapTK&rank=2" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">The 9/11 Report: A Graphic Adaptation, </a>the <a href="https://9-11commission.gov/report/" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">585-page</a> report published by the 9/11 Commission in 2002 and praised by the late comic book legend, Stan Lee. Each chapter of the book is named after the corresponding section of the report. The dry source material becomes a gripping saga bringing to life events leading up to the 2001 terrorist attack. Creating Powerful Stories from Primary Sources The first chapter of The 9/11 Report recreates a minute-by-minute timeline for each hijacked plane. The feeling of chaos and uncertainty exists within the story just as it did on the day it happened. The 9/11 Report combines character dialogue with information resembling fact sheets and white paper reports. The plot is interspersed with building layouts, organizational charts, maps, and political leader portraits which serve to strengthen the reader’s understanding of the catastrophe unfolding. Jacobson and Colon succeed in translating a voluminous source document into an unforgettable narrative. This is impressive considering the book is only 130 pages, most of them illustrations. With so much text to choose from, every inclusion is deliberate and purposeful. <a href="https://medium.com/@TheJauntyCrow/the-pedagogical-power-of-graphic-novels-in-history-education-178386c832e8">Read More</a>