Several contributions in "Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education" have highlighted the role of visualization tools and the importance of developing students' visual literacy in biochemistry education. In this forum, the authors suggest that more focus is needed on the assessment of student learning, and they advance…

Less attention has been paid to teachers' relationship to contemporary visual culture, and specifically about their own visual culture. In this paper, the author would like to focus on how they relate to these global visual discourses, in order to discuss their participation in the production of visual imaginaries. She will confront the argument…

Information graphics or diagrams are two-dimensional maps of relationships that present information. Creators and interpreters of diagrams need to know what makes some diagrams more effective in communicating information. This paper suggests a theoretical framework for diagram classification to make this possible. This framework consists of two…

Academics have a long history of claiming and defending the superiority of verbal over visual for representing knowledge. By dismissing imagery as mere decoration, they have upheld the sanctity of print for academic discourse. However, in the last decade, digital technologies have broken down the barriers between words and pictures, and many of…

Outlines the history of information visualization, the present state of the art, and the possibilities and challenges that lie ahead. Describes how the articles in this special issue (devoted to visualizing information) help explain the principles and practices of information visualization. Challenges technical communicators to expand their view…

An effective way to teach literature to students accustomed to electronic media is to use prose and poetry as raw materials for the production of photography projects that translate print into more familiar and exciting forms. Studies confirm that "visual literacy" should be an important part of a modern student's education. "Picture reading," an…

Provides evidence of the devaluation of visuals in technical communication courses and also that pedagogical materials on visuals are at odds with current rhetorical theory and are increasingly anachronistic in the computer era. Discusses implications of the computers' impact for visual instruction and presents suggestions for future directions in…

Reviews reading skills needed for social studies learning in the intermediate grades and expands on the skill area of comprehending graphic aids. Suggests that teachers must help children to perceive visual symbolism; interpret pictures; use graphics, maps, and globes; develop TV and film literacy; and use visual expression. (Author/SJL)

The act of composition is based on perception, selection, and arrangement in time and space of what is seen. How the world is seen depends on experience, memory, sensibility, discriminative powers, sexual identity, and cultural and historical contexts. Students can learn to understand how their personality affects what they see by maintaining…

The 40 papers in this collection cover a wide variety of topics within the broad field of visual literacy. Three preliminary papers discuss visualization through film. The second section, which emphasizes visualization in a social context, contains 10 papers addressing cultural, political, social, and psychological issues, touching upon such…

It is proposed that visual literacy be defined as the ability to understand (read) and use (write) images and to think and learn in terms of images. This definition includes three basic principles: (1) visuals are a language and thus analogous to verbal language; (2) a visually literate person should be able to understand (read) images and use…

Discusses the differences of perception and interpretation of visual aids between African and Western students and considers the implications for designers and producers of learning materials for African students. (Author/JJD)

Designed for professionals who design and develop instructional materials, this paper identifies specific and general strategies that educational technologists can employ in their media productions to enhance aesthetic awareness. A brief overview of aesthetics and aesthetic education is provided, including definitions and various approaches to…

Visualization as a factor of intelligence includes the mental manipulation of spatial configurations and has been associated with spatial abilities, creative thinking, and conceptual problem solving. There are numerous reports of scientists and mathematicians using visualization to anticipate transformation of the external world. Artists and…

This paper presents elements of the computer graphics environment including information on: Lotus 1-2-3; Apple Macintosh; Desktop Publishing; Object-Oriented Programming; and Microsoft's Windows 3. A brief scenario illustrates the use of the minimization principle in presenting a new product to a group of international financiers. A taxonomy of…