Scholars have argued that imprecise data graphics, specifically those displaying decorative dimensionality of data, may lead to inaccurate interpretations. Empirical tests of decorative dimensionality have produced mixed results. The literature also suggests that the effects of decorative dimensionality may depend on the cognitive demand of a…

Visual literacy is based on the idea that pictures communicate or can be "read," a more and more highly prized skill in our educational landscape. The outcomes of the pilot study conducted with undergraduate teacher candidates engaged in Illustrator Studies are analyzed to broach aesthetic concepts and explore creative teaching pathways…

The arts disciplines (visual arts, music, theatre, and dance) merit and require formal study. Policy makers should support studies in the arts as core disciplines, as specified in the "Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA)," the federal legislation that sets policy and appropriations for public education. The arts merit and…

This research uses cognitive load theory and theories of visual literacy to provide a theoretical underpinning for techniques to improve students' ability to recognise designers' styles in higher education. Using a lecture followed by tutorial format, students were required to learn the characteristics needed to identify a designer's work either…

The so-called millennial learners who currently populate college classrooms are purportedly digital natives whose repeated exposure to a host of new technologies has allegedly resulted in enhanced skills in several areas, including those related to technology and visual communication. By extension, the argument has been made that digital natives…

This paper highlights the instructional design process followed by the Maricopa Community College faculty in the creation of instructional modules in Digital Visual Literacy. The paper categorizes 10 tasks that an instructional designer, a teacher, or a trainer performs during the design phase of the instructional design process. The importance of…

Multimodal learning materials are frequently met in education assuming enhanced learning outcomes. This study examined whether contrasts in such materials are likely to support reading comprehension for all readers. Young adults (n = 46) met either text-only or text+picture material. Participants (19 with low phonological awareness [PA] and 27…

For the forty-fourth time, the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) is sponsoring the publication of these Proceedings. Papers published in this volume were presented online and onsite during the annual AECT Convention. Volume 1 contains papers dealing primarily with research and development topics. Papers dealing with…

This study investigated whether the instruction of visual design principles had an influence on pre-service teachers' perception and analysis (interpretation) of visual materials. In addition, the relationships between pre-service teachers' visual intelligence and their perception and analysis (interpretation) of visual materials were also…

Today, photography and visual arts are very important in our modern life. Especially for the mass communication, the visual images and visual arts have very big importance. In modern societies, people must have knowledge about the visual things, such as photographs, cartoons, drawings, typography, etc. Briefly, the people need education on visual…

This article explores the ethical, methodological, and practical issues of translating critical theory and research into praxis through a case study analysis of a graduate capstone seminar that explored the familiar, and seemingly benign, concepts common to educational discourses: "Creativity, Collaboration, and Community." The author…

One of the key tasks of the university in the 21st century is to nurture visually literate students in the information age. Given that we live in a very highly visualized world, it is increasingly important that students are educated as critical viewers who are able to respond to visual images in an analytical and selective manner. The education…

Web 2.0 technologies create opportunities for distance learning with particular promise for students while they are on international exchange. The current generation of students departing for study abroad is electronically literate or "digital natives", who have thoroughly integrated internet and communication technologies into their…

In a graduate literacy course, the author as the teacher educator conceptualized "Visual Literacy" into the course. In-service and pre-service teachers from inner-city schools in Georgia and Virginia invited struggling writers to create graphic novels by envisioning life activities, using drawings, and invented spellings as well as…

This article reports the result of an action research study that explored the need for visual literacy as an additional instructional input for students creating technology integration solutions. The introduction of visual literacy concepts is useful in two ways. First, it raises visual considerations to the conscious consideration of students.…