Using comics and graphic novels in K-9 education: An integrative research review

Abstract

The aim of this article is to increase knowledge on the use of comics as materials in K-9 education (ages 6–15). This is achieved through an integrative research review. Reference lists and websites have been searched, both by database searches and manually, and the results analysed and cross-referenced to identify common areas of research and possible gaps in knowledge. 55 texts (research articles and doctoral theses) were found, with 40 first authors from fourteen countries. The results revealed several gaps in knowledge. Most of the analysed studies had been carried out in North America, which suggests that more studies in other educational contexts, published in English, are needed, and that cross-national studies of comics in education will be productive. Furthermore, only three of the analysed texts describe studies that have high ecological validity, while all of the remaining 52 studies were ‘staged’ studies, in which the researcher had introduced material and observed the results. This suggests that further studies that utilize non-experimental research methods are needed. Finally, most studies focus on students’ reading preferences in regard to comics, rather than, for example, on how students compose comics or what they learn through comics. Thus, further studies that explore student work with comics, and examine the kinds of knowledge that reading comics enables, are desirable.