Visual Literacy

The ability to create images, use them to communicate ideas and solve problems, and understand their aesthetic and

Instructive value.

Visual LiteracyFactors

Technology

Abstraction & Meaning

Critical Analysis

Graphical Design

Communication

Cognitive Theory & Perception

PatternRecognition

Some Motivating Factors

• Greater level of flexibility, variety, and efficiency• Increased opportunity for collaborative discussion, interactivity, and student

collaboration• Easier to explain concepts and make connections to the applications of theory• Opportunity to present up-to-date information • Enhanced situational and contextual scaffolding• Ability to hold students responsible for reviewing images• Greater awareness of pedagogical methodology• New course possibilities (e.g., data visualization)

Digital Visualization is Changing How Faculty Teach

David Green, Using Digital Images in Teaching and Learning: Perspectives from LiberalArts Institutions. Academic Commons (October 2006). http://www.academiccommons.org/imagereport.

After Berry et al. 2008. The role of emotion in teaching and learningHistory: a scholarship of teaching exploration.

1. Water2. Over-fishing3. Predatory-Prey

http://site.arbico-organics.com/images/japanese-beetle-lifecycle.jpg

http://www.chrisjordan.com/

http://www.sciencemag.org/vis2008/show/

Some Pedagogy

• Use images that require interpretation and raise questions

• Use images from other disciplines and everyday life

• Distinguish between memorizing and image and understanding what it represents

• Be prepared to teach students how to analyze images

Some Challenges

• New teaching technologies require new skills

• Ad hoc use of imagery vs. meaningful classroom activities

• Copyright

• Lack of comparative study and documentation

• Tenure track – demands and rewards

Visual Imagery

• Brings intuitive meaning to data• Facilitates long-term memory and knowledge retention• Provides a rich contextual background to scaffold ideas • Offers a structure to explain concepts or theoretical arguments• Generates unique perspectives • Encourages student, creativity, interactivity, and discussion