Abstract

Graphic communication is indispensable in education, particularly in a prevalent non-literate society. The ability of the cartoon to capture attention, stimulate interest and facilitate cognitive consolidation in target audience as well as illustrate ideas trenchantly and humorously is prospective of a veritable visual aid for classroom communication. Nevertheless, the cartoon is neglected in formal education in Nigeria. So, this paper investigates the effectiveness of cartoons in the classroom. It utilizes the Experimental research approach characterized by control. The paper begins with the need for veritable instructional materials, which is a major challenge confronting education in Nigeria. And it determines the acceptability and usage of cartoon in the classroom as well as examines its effectiveness in classroom communication. Using random sampling technique, five primary schools and one hundred and ninety two pupils consist of the sample for the study. The result indicates that the use of cartoons in classroom communication made acceptable and distinct contributions to learning; without sacrificing the subject-matter not presented specifically by the cartoons. Also, it is effective to pupils of high and low performance levels. Finally the paper suggests the use of narrative cartoons to illustrate books and teach abstract concepts/subject-matter like the digestive system to primary school pupils in Nigeria. Keywords: Graphic Communication, Learning, Cartoons, Classroom Communication.