Friday, May 08, 2009

Digital Visual Literacy

(Sorry fot the few days blogging gap, I've been out doing talks at conferences, which I will blog shortly) A useful resource to develop visual literacy, Digital Visual Literacy, has been produced by the Maricopa Center for Learning and Instruction, supported by a substantial grant from the National Science Foundation. There are online "modules" including an introduction and ones focusing on topics such as copyright, visual rhetoric for blogs (rhetoric is not a topic that features in the UK university curriculum, but I know it does in the US) and skills in manipulating images and using Powerpoint, Excel and Word effectively. Thus there is more of a practical focus than I thought there would be when I first saw the site, but it does have a good focus on thinking about the impact and implications of using these tools, not just the technicalities. The introduction also covers some visual literacy issues nicely. In each case you get full teacher notes, powerpoint/ exercises/quizzes (plus answers) that you might use with learners.
"A modern, literate person is one who is not only able to read and write but is educated in all the
basic means necessary to thrive in a digital, networked world. An important aspect of this general literacy is a digital visual literacy, the ability to critically analyze visual materials, create effective visual communications, and make judgments and decisions using visual representations of thoughts and ideas." (from the introduction for tutors) http://mcli.maricopa.edu/dvl
Photo by Sheila Webber: Jenny at Southover Grange, Lewes, April 2009

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