Today's culture
has become so visual that teachers and students get considerable information
from visual elements. These visual elements are increasingly appearing in
teaching and learning resources, delivered across a range of media in a variety
of formats: textbooks, multimedia presentations, computer tutorials, television
programs, and Web resources (Sims et al., 2002). Visual information usually
comes in the form of line drawings, photographs, maps, diagrams, flowcharts,
graphs, time lines, geometrical figures, and Venn diagrams.
Educators believe
that using visual treatments helps learners to explore meanings clearly,
directly, and easily, and yields positive results (Chanlin, 1998). For example,
students can learn the word "spoon," but to look at a spoon
communicates so much more. By looking at the spoon, students can read the
history of eating, utensils, materials, civilization, culture, and habits
(Bleed, 2005).
Visual literacy, learning, and technology
Wileman (1993)
defines visual literacy as “the ability to read, interpret, and understand
information presented in pictorial or graphic images” (p.114). He describes the
ability to turn information into pictures as “visual thinking” (p.114).
However, if literacy is reading and writing, Brill, Kim, and Branch (2000)
believe that visual literacy is the ability to interpret, and generate or
select images for communicating ideas and concepts. They indicated that a
visually literate learner should be able to make sense of visible objects, and
create static or dynamic visible objects. More specifically, Roblyer and
Bennett (2001) explained that a visually literate learner should be able to:
- Interpret, understand, and appreciate the meaning
of visual messages.
- Communicate more effectively through applying the
basic principles and concepts of visual design.
- Produce visual messages using the computer and
other technology.
- Use visual thinking to conceptualize solutions to
problems (p. 9).
Roblyer and
Bennett emphasized the need to develop appropriate selection, production, and
evaluation strategies, and provide learners with the principles of visual
communication, which can then be put into practice in a variety of settings,
activities, and subject areas to improve the above visual literacy skills.
Stokes (2002) agreed that students need to learn how to communicate using
visual language, and know terms such as composition, foreground, and background
in order to talk about images. Students need to be able to describe everything
that they see and apply critical thinking to images in the same way they apply
critical thinking to text.
Two major
approaches have been suggested for developing visual literacy skills (Heinich
et al., 1999). The first is to help learners decode (read) visuals through
practicing analysis techniques. Decoding involves interpreting and creating
meaning from visual stimuli. The second is to help them encode (compose)
visuals as a tool for communication.
Decoding of
visual messages can be improved by asking questions, such as: What does this
image mean to me? What is the relationship between the image and the displayed
text message? How is this message effective? Similar questions are asked during
visual message creation as well: How can I visually depict this message? How
can I make this message effective? What are some visual/verbal relationships I
can use? (Riesland, 2005). Riesland believes that once students internalize
these questions, they will not only be able to encode and decode visual
messages, but will also be prepared to communicate with a level of visual
sophistication that will carry them through multimedia-dependent and modern
work environments.
Research has
explored the relationship between learning and technology, and indicated that
recent technologies like computers and the Internet have changed teaching and
learning practices, and provided learners with more responsibilities and
opportunities for their learning to innovatively locate and use resources to
construct meaning (Sims et al., 2002). The World Wide Web, for example, as a
graphical user interface application requires skills for recognizing navigation
elements, controlling menus, and reading images in order to derive meaning from
what is being communicated. In addition, photo-editing tools have made it easy
for anyone to create or manipulate images, and to disseminate those images more
widely than at any point in history.
In addition, the
growth of image-rich resources is due in part to the wide availability of
graphics software, and digital image management and sharing Web applications
that facilitate the creation, storage, dissemination, and exchange of images
(Sims et al., 2002). Inexpensive storage and widely available dissemination
methods have made digital images a convenient and easily available information
format (Chen, 1999). During the past three years, a new generation of Web-based
applications for collaboration and community building has emerged, providing
Web users with a tremendous capability to connect with and share a variety of
resources. Among these social applications are photo-sharing applications.