Visual Literacy
Base XP: 45
Learning Target(s):
Select and apply appropriate strategies in a variety of contexts to comprehend written, oral, visual, and multimodal texts, to guide inquiry, and to extend thinking
Recognize an increasing range of text structures and how they contribute to meaning
“The basic definition of visual literacy is the ability to read, write and create visual images. It is a concept that relates to art and design but it also has much wider applications. Visual literacy is about language, communication and interaction. Visual media is a linguistic tool with which we communicate, exchange ideas and navigate our highly visual digital world.” (https://visualliteracytoday.org/what-is-visual-literacy/)
Understanding and sharing information in a visual way.
A great example of the value of visual literacy is one that we experience nearly every day: road signs. Traffic is the perfect context, the perfect application for this form of communication. As drivers, we need to be able to read signs, understand their meaning, and react to their meaning in a very short time frame.
Some signs may include text, but the visual element dominates the space so that motorists can interpret the message quickly and get back to driving. Can you think of other scenarios that might use visual elements to communicate important messages? Airport restrooms (where, many patrons do not speak the native language), for example.
Task:
For this assignment, you will download the worksheet, choose an infographic (include a copy for me please, unless it's one of the ones included below), and analyze your infographic based on the design features and conventions that are explained in the notes below.
Visual Reading Strategies
Communicating visually, be it on a sign, on a poster, or in a film, requires that the creator considers more than just the shape of the image or the movement on the screen. Other important factors contribute to the message that the reader/viewer receives. These contributions have the power to solidify the message as well as tear it down, if not used correctly. We will examine the impact that colour and layout have on visual communication.
COLOUR: In literature, colours have inherent meanings. The colour white, for example, usually signifies notions of innocence or purity. Other colours can carry more than one meaning, like the colour red, which can suggest power and strength, but it can also be a warning to suggest that some great danger is on its way. In some cultures, red is a sign of luck. So, understanding the power that colour has on the reader is absolutely necessary for those who deliver visual information. Click the images below to learn what meaning color has in literature and in advertising.
LAYOUT: When we read traditional texts such as articles, novels, and instruction manuals, we begin at the top-left corner of the text and work our way to the bottom-right corner. This practice is second nature to us and requires no mental energy. However, visual texts such as charts, graphs, maps, and infographics do not necessarily follow the same rules. They are designed using a nonlinear layout (the layout is not straight forward or traditional). In order for the reader to follow these unorthodox layouts, the creators must provide extra information, clues of some kind, to inform the reader how they must read the document. This sometimes appears in the form of simple arrows and pathways but it can also be a grouping of different types of information and then allowing the reader to form his/her own path through the document. When reading a visual text, it is a good idea to pause briefly before beginning in order to assess the author’s intended approach. This reading strategy will help you to better understand a visual text’s purpose. Click the images below for two nonlinear layouts.
Submit your response here when it's ready for assessment. Let me know when it's ready to assess, as well as whether you earned additional XP :)