Abstract: Definitions of literacy that focus solely on reading words provide too narrow a framework for many students with severe disabilities. Obtaining information from the environment may be accomplished in a variety of modes, such as visual literacy, which is the ability to discern meaning conveyed through images. A component of visual literacy is picture reading. This study demonstrates the teaching of logo reading through time delay as an additional component of visual literacy. Visual literacy is discussed as a primary means of obtaining information for some students and as an additional means of literacy for students who can also learn to read Words.

Abstract: By using Radical Change texts and wikis—online, open-source, Web-creation software—the researcher in this study anticipated that students would create “e-literature” that would have interesting hyperlinks, both with other students' texts and throughout the story. Instead, the students did very little connecting, wrote small fragments of text, and relied primarily on images to “tell” a story. Nevertheless, during the interviews, the researcher found that the students had developed some visual literacy skills, and she identified four teaching practices that were important for engaging students in literacy processes: 1 focusing events 2 interacting in groups 3 enabling constraints 4 playing opportunities

Abstract: Dawnene D. Hassett and Melissa B. Schieble contend that literacy instruction must include attention to the multiple ways in which print and visual images work together. They propose ways to update accepted reading strategies "with visual texts and new literacies in mind." Using examples from picture books and graphic novels, they expand our understanding of how readers extend three cueing systems-graphophonic, semantic, and syntactic--to negotiate multiple levels of meaning in visual texts.

Abstract: A well-rounded education in the 21st century requires not just verbal and mathematical proficiency, but also the ability to interpret, critique, create, and use visual communication on sophisticated levels. In today’s visual world, it is critically important to hold an appreciation for the profound effects imagery has on individuals and the communities in which they live. Visual Communication focuses on cultivating visual and media literacy from both consumption and production points of view and introduces students to the application of intuitive intelligence to a visual context. Innovative in its field, it provides a solid theoretical overview of the most advanced thinking and research about visual communication, teaching readers how to apply theory to enhance their understanding of and work with images. This book is intended for students in visual literacy and communication courses. It can also be used in photojournalism courses and other coursework with a visual component. Individuals interested in mass media studies will likewise find the book to be a worthwhile read.

Abstract: dine explains that adolescents live in a society where "[tjhis nonverbal and highly visual culture is expanding rapidly as a result of the communication revolution" (634). Intensely visual media such as text messaging, video games, television, and computers are ubiquitous in students' everyday lives. In a world where students increasingly engage with visual texts, picture books represent a valuable addition to the secondary curriculum. Many picture books today explore complex themes and address topics appropriate for secondary school students (see sidebar). These books require readers to use both visual and print literacies to understand and interpret them, as the illustrations and text "form an artistic unit that is stronger than either of them would be alone" (Stewig 9). Indeed, Lee Galda and Kathy G. Short assert that "[illustrations are not an extension of the text that simply reinforce the meanings of the words, but are necessary for comprehension" (506). Drawing on their extensive visual knowledge, readers have the potential to gain a deeper sensitivity to the characters' emotions and intentions, and greater insight into the issues and struggles portrayed in the books, than may be possible when reading the text alone. Adolescent readers can enhance their understanding of even the most complex social issues when reading picture books. Selection is a critical factor when bringing picture books into secondary classrooms. Not all picture books are appropriate for secondary students' critical reading and interpretation of diverse perspectives. Teachers must consider the complexity of text and illustration interactions and the level of sophistication of the themes when making decisions about which picture books to use. In this article, we argue that picture books offer a medium for teaching visual and critical literacy across the curriculum in secondary classrooms, and we present a unit on World War II that integrates objectives from the theatre arts, social studies, and art curricula. Students in grades 10 to 12 completed the unit in their theatre arts class in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Their learning in all the subject areas was enriched through dramatic response two books: Roberto Innocenti's Rose Blanche, a partially fictional book, illustrated in oils, that explores the perspective of a German child caught risking her life to help German Jews; and William Kaplan's One More Border: The True Story of One Family's Escape from War-Torn Europe, which tells the story of the author's cape from the Nazis on a journey that took him across Asia and eventually to Cornwall, Ontario, Canada. Chalk and pastel illustrations, together with period photos and documents, add to One More Boder's realism and historical accuracy. Through the study of these historical picture books, students developed a deeper appreciation for the difficult decisions made by individuals living in Europe during World War II. The books helped students to "understand both the public events that we usually label 'history' and the private struggles that have characterized the human

Abstract: The theme for this 33rd Annual Conference of the International Visual Literacy Association in Eskilstuna, Sweden, is “Visual Literacy in Message Design”. Both visual literacy and message design are broad concepts, each with a long history. Researchers with different kinds of backgrounds have shown an interest in visual literacy. This is also true for message design, which can be divided in several categories. Various areas of design have different objectives and the information materials reach out to different groups of receivers. Visual literacy and the use of images is important in message design. At the same time message design is important in the study of visual literacy. The concepts of visual literacy and message design partly overlap one another.

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Abstract: This paper summarizes the keynote address from the 31st Annual Conference of the International Visual Literacy Association (IVLA). The premise of the address is that burgeoning knowledge from the neurosciences and the visual arts gives a unique perspective for understanding and supporting the development of visual literacy efforts. Combined with the extensive knowledge base from IVLA history, a consilience with information from the arts and sciences gives an increasingly sound basis for understanding the natural visual mind. This brain based approach will give the strongest foundation for visual literacy in the future.

Abstract: Visual representations are especially well suited to the construction of implicit meanings. Like advocates in other fields, lawyers use visual displays to prompt cognitive and emotional associations of which viewers may not be aware, and which, consequently, they are less likely to evaluate critically. The authors review some of the psychological and rhetorical effects of visual representations in general, discuss several examples of how legal visual displays encourage audiences to draw implicit inferences, and argue for the importance of heightened visual literacy in improving our ability to understand the meanings and implications of visual advocacy within the legal system.

Abstract: This study explores distinct levels of meaning from images of picture books perceived by 3- to 5-year-old children and investigates how the certain visual perception factors influence children's meaning making and if these factors are correlated. The literature review supports associations among visual perception, information, picture books, meaning, and children. Visual perception serves as the first channel that filters and interprets visual information, and picture books provide visual and verbal experience for children, who constantly search for meaning. Children age 3 to 5 years are potential users of picture books because pictorial information is considered useful to children's learning tasks. Previous research reveals that various factors influence visual perception, and meaning has been mostly associated with its semantic significance in information retrieval. In information science, little research has focused on young children's own way of categorizing information, especially visual information. In order to investigate the distinct levels of meaning perceived by children, the investigation employed both qualitative and quantitative methods including unobtrusive and participant observation, factor analysis, content analysis, and case study. The result of this study contributes to understanding the cognitive process of children related to visual literacy and their interpreting visual information in a digital environment.

Abstract: Contemporary students may seek and use images in their course work to a much higher degree than ever before. Information literacy sessions that focus on locating, evaluating, and using written texts should also integrate discussion and activities related to images and other visual resources. The author offers manageable, time-efficient strategies for library instruction related to images that will reinforce and enhance traditional instruction topics.

Abstract: Visual displays of data, images of subatomic to planetary-scale features, and animations of geological processes are widely used to enrich our disciplines. However, their communicative power may be dramatically different to a student and to an expert because of the need for prior knowledge and inference when interpreting visuals. To “see” equivalent visual information, the non-expert must learn the visual language of the expert. Teaching visual literacy is important to instruction at all levels and is as fundamental to a discipline as its vocabulary. The underlying foundations of visual literacy and the recognition of what one “sees” and interprets in a visual depiction are critical for enhancing student learning and for effective communication in our visually rich discipline.

Abstract: This thesis reports on a collaborative action research case study into the teaching of visual literacy to Grade 10 learners in a rural high school in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. Visual literacy is one of the critical aspects that have been incorporated in the teaching of English First Additional Language as required by the National Curriculum Statement (Grade 10-12), which has been implemented in Grade 10 as from 2006. With the aim of improving learners’ performance in visual literacy I designed a visual literacy unit that consisted of lesson plans running over 7 periods in 10 school days. In implementing the unit the learners were first grouped and then exposed to visual grammar and visual texts and then they critically viewed such texts and designed their own. Data was collected daily in the form of individual learner journals, researcher’s journal/diary, and copies were kept of activities done by learners (individually or in groups). Also, two teachers were invited as non-participant observers to each visit a lesson. Learner focus groups were conducted and critical friends were interviewed, tape recorded and transcribed. A camera was used to take still photographs to show learner activities in groups and during group presentations. The data revealed that visual literacy could be taught meaningfully in a rural high school as the learners could identify, cut, paste and discuss elements of visual language and they finally designed their own advertisements in groups. In the analysis of data the following factors emerged as hindrances for successful teaching of visual literacy in a rural high school: lack of resources; learners’ lack of a foundation in visual literacy from Grades 7-9; and problems revolving around time management and pacing. As action research comes in spirals, this research represented the first one and the researcher found the study an eye opener and a foundation to build on in the second spiral (that is not part of this research).

Abstract: Much of the advertising content children see is adult‐oriented. However, research has focused on commercials designed for child audiences. Also, whether advertising is commercially successful or no...

Abstract: Connect new adult readers and your library. "Adult Learners Welcome Here" is designed to help librarians connect new adult readers with books and to acquaint literacy teachers with materials generally available in their public library. Weibel outlines the library's role in fostering adult literacy and shows how popular library materials - art and photography books, poetry, literature, non-fiction, and print and electronic reference sources - can be used by librarians and teachers in new and innovative ways. She provides recommended titles (complete with bibliographic information, annotations, subject headings, and reading levels) and ready-to-use lessons that improve visual literacy, creativity, and even technological competency while building phonetic skills and comprehension. The recommendations and lessons can be used with all levels of adult learners and both native and non-native English speakers. There is guidance for improving instruction to adults and building literacy coalitions between libraries and other community organizations. This unique and comprehensive resource will help libraries improve their own services and support the important work of educators in their community.

Abstract: In truth, walking down Main Street in many American small towns today is rather like walking through an art museum whose walls have mysterious gaps where paintings have been removed for cleaning. Maybe more accurately, walking down Main Street can be rather like walking through the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston after a Vermeer, two Rembrandts, and eleven other artworks were stolen in 1990: since the Gardner’s charter does not allow it to rearrange its holdings, the resulting gaps remained with only explanatory notes in their too-large spaces on my last visit there. A town I know well has a disturbing number of empty storefronts, identified with only the faint outlines of their former names, their windows holding explanatory notes in the form of signs proclaiming that they are for sale or rent. Thanks to Wal-Mart and other big-box stores thriving in a distinctly nonpedestrian strip north of town, the commerce that once thrived on Main Street has died or been removed to new locations, and the oncelively street-level shop windows that testified to downtown liveliness for foot traffic are now empty, awaiting new life as, very likely, antique shops or restaurants. But in principle, a walk down Main Street can be very much like a stroll through a museum gallery—visually rich, inviting unexpected choices, aesthetically rewarding. This article explores the concept of shop windows as visually ordered compositions much like paintings and other art objects and suggests some approaches to applying this concept in teaching a range of subjects and styles of art in both classrooms and actual museums. For the purposes of argument, we will assume that our mythical Main Street is alive

Abstract: This paper presents the (student) proceedings of a successful inter-university co-operation between a research university and a university of applied sciences, in the field of Visual Literacy and Visual Communication. The origin lays in the international symposium “Digital Communities for Global Education” (Enschede NL, 2006) and the start was a web-based course in Informational Graphic Design. The ongoing development is an experimental master course in which students of both institutes work together. The participating professors are also involved in European Co-operative networks as well as Trans Atlantic- and Euro-Asian ones. Participating students are coming from all over the world so give the course a multi cultural character. Research questions for the project are 1) what is the universal content of a message and 2) how can this message be encoded? 3) what factors do influence the interaction processes in networked education?

Abstract: T hroughout his 34 years of teaching, Jerome Burg has always included Candide in the syllabus. Burg doesn’t find it hard to interest today’s high school students in a work of literature first published in 1759. He presents Voltaire’s classic as a rollicking adventure story—a road trip. And to keep his approach fresh, he’s always on the lookout for new strategies and projects to ensure that tales like Candide come alive for young readers. Burg left his own classroom last year and now helps other teachers integrate technology into the curriculum at Granada High School in Livermore, California. One new project he designed is heightening global interest in literary road trips by creating a resource that combines a new technology with a time-tested instructional approach. Google Lit Trips harnesses Google Earth as a powerhouse teaching tool for literature studies. The interactive Web-based application allows users to literally search the globe, using satellite imagery, maps, terrain, and other three-dimensional images. Burg has designed custom files so that literature students virtually travel along with a literary character, using Google Earth to explore the key locations of a story. By Suzie Boss and Jane Krauss Power of the Mashup

Abstract: Media and information literacy perspectives could offer new justification for the expansion of graduate program offerings in a variety of fields. The interdisciplinary field of media and information literacy continues to discover new paths of research. For example, visual literacy, computer advertisements, critical deconstruction of media, distance education, convergence, video games and music videos were some of the topics explored in 2006.

Abstract: Dawnene D. Hassett and Melissa B. Schieble contend that literacy instruction must include attention to the multiple ways in which print and visual images work together. They propose ways to update accepted reading strategies “with visual texts and new literacies in mind.” Using examples from picture books and graphic novels, they expand our understanding of how readers extend three cueing systems—graphophonic, semantic, and syntactic—to negotiate multiple levels of meaning in visual texts.

Abstract: Visual representations are especially well suited to the construction of implicit meanings. Like advocates in other fields, lawyers use visual displays to prompt cognitive and emotional associations of which viewers may not be aware and which, consequently, they are less likely to evaluate critically. The authors review some of the psychological and rhetorical effects of visual representations in general, discuss several examples of how legal visual displays encourage audiences to draw implicit inferences and argue for the importance of heightened visual literacy in improving our ability to understand the meanings and implications of visual advocacy within the legal system.

Abstract: This tutorial is designed for students in various disciplines (arts & sciences) that traditionally work in other media and would like to integrate visualization into their work to enhance communication of ideas and concepts. Attendees that are already using visualization methods in their work can benefit from this tutorial because they will be exposed to different methods as it provides an environment to improve communication skills and the opportunity to acquire visual literacy. This tutorial provides an examination of different kinds of visualization concepts, which will be exemplified by the work of different artists and scientists, both historical and current. In addition to the lecture component the course provides hands-on experience with a laboratory assignment. The tutorial is based on a the class co-created and taught by Jack Ox and Judith v. der Elst, Fall '06, at the ARTS Lab, University of New Mexico.

Abstract: Visual literacy competencies and constructs extend beyond education. The purpose of this research was to understand the impact visual literacy and its constructs have made in the post secondary tex...