Visual Literacy

Theo Kuechel, Jeff Beaudry and Sarah Ritz-Swain | View as single page |
Visual Literacy
Definitions
Why Visual Literacy is important in Education
Context
Pedagogical Strategies
Resources
What is VL, why should teachers know this
What would a VL teacher or learner know?
How does VL relate to other literacies?
What pedagogical strategies make use of the affordances of VL
Where can teachers find resources to support VL?
What should teachers know about VL?
An understanding of the importance of VL
What are the constituent parts of VL?
What pedagogical concepts does VL involve?
Communities of Practice
Why is the history of visual learning important for teachers
Practical competences and skills related to visual literacy
The basic elements of VL; the grammar and syntax of visual media
Which pedagogical questions can teachers ask to develop VL
Tools and platforms
Links and sources
Areas for further research
Strength of Evidence
Transferability
Editors' Comments

Why is an understanding of Visual Literacy important?

Visual literacy is an essential ‘literacy’ for teachers, and one they should be actively exploring and encouraging and helping  their learners develop. Digital platforms, tools and environments have become ubiquitous  and it can be argued that visual literacy is very closely linked to digital literacy. These inextricable links between the digital and the visual, affect education as much as any other aspect of our lives.

Visual Literacy is a cross disciplinary competence, and pays an important role in all subjects, and is just as important in the STEM subjects as the Arts and Humanities.

Ausubel makes a clear distinction between rote learning and meaningful learning, and the need for learners to struggle to integrate new concepts into existing structures of knowledge. Developing critical thinking (analysis, evaluation, design) requires learners to develop highly differentiated concepts through meaningful learning (Novak, 2014). Concept maps are one of the best tools to accomplish this level of critical thinking.

The following references are part of the evidence base for this resource.

Moore, D, and Readence, J,. A quantitative and qualitative review of graphic organizer research,  (1984), Journal of Educational Research, 78(1), pp. 11-17.

Nesbit, J. & Adesope, O. . Learning with concept and knowledge maps: A meta-analysis. (2006) Review of Educational Research. 76(3), pp. 413-448.

Novak, J. (2014). Cases on Teaching Critical Thinking through Visual Representation Strategies. L.

Shedletsky and J. Beaudry. (Eds.). Cases on Teaching Critical Thinking through Visual Representation Strategies. L. Hershey, PA: IGI Publications.

Hattie, J. (2009). Visible learning. Routledge. New York, NY: Routledge.

Hattie, J. (2012). Visible learning for teachers. New York, NY: Routledge.

Flood, J. Lapp, L. and Brice Heath, S,.  (1998)  Hypertext and the question of visual literacy. Handbook of literacy and technology: Transformations in a post-typographic world 3-14.

 

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