Based on the notion that visual decisions play an important role in what children recognize and interpret in books and that teachers have a special responsibility to help students become visually literate, this article draws parallels between visual and verbal concepts and suggests some activities for teaching "picture reading" skills in the…

The effect of verbal contextual information on junior high school students' categorization of differences among photographic art was examined. Photographs of varying levels of abstraction were presented to the viewers both with and without correct and erroneous titles that referred to descriptive or interpretive information. Twelve students…

Research has shown that producers and consumers of television programs are still uncertain about the nature of the "grammar" or "lexicon" that makes up the language of television. Although attempts have been made in experimental television ("video art"), systematic studies on the idiosyncratic nature, unique features,…

Film making as a means of exposing public school students to the power of visual language. (Author)

An historical review of definitions of visual literacy is summarized by the statement, "the transmission of meaning visually is what visual literacy is all about." To be visually literate is to be able to gain meaning from what we see and to be able to communicate meaning to others through the images we create. Three assumptions, taken from the…

The goals of the visual arts program of the Attleboro (MA) public schools, its relationship with the rest of the curriculum, and a study of the effectiveness of the program in seventh grade are described. It is suggested that the visual conceptual skills that are developed through the visual arts program are essential to cognitive processes and…

Image making, like writing and speaking, is a carrier of ideas. This paper presents photography as therapy, a useful concept for advocates of humanistic education. The paper shows that Western civilization, due to its preoccupation with science, technology, and commerce, enhances and promotes left-hemispheric brain functions (verbal, analytical,…

A research project investigated the extent to which children's visual awareness and visual literacy were developed through photography. Thirty-four elementary school students were provided with Polaroid "Big Swinger" cameras; they were given one roll of film per day for eight weeks and allowed to photograph whatever they liked. After…

This book covers the life and aesthetic qualities of the work of the European film-maker Jean-Marie Straub (1933- ). It contains introductory chapters on the biography and artistic milieu of Straub and continues with a chapter-by-chapter critical treatment of each of his films: "Machorka-Muff"; "Not Reconciled"; "Chronicle…

Entertainment films are being increasingly used as a means of stimulating discussion of contemporary problems, ethical issues, and cross generational dialog. In order to help teachers and organizations deal fully and responsibly with such films, this directory references 100 "entertainment" films under categories such as sex and marriage, justice…

Provides the first installment of a two-part article about television: how it affects us, what it says about our lives, and how we can make it work better. (KS)

Proposes ways for teachers to integrate visual literacy into the curriculum in order for young people to understand the visual culture they live in. Examples use children's books to explore stereotypes, reading images, artistic style, visual accuracy, and comparisons between books and the audiovisual products upon which they are based. (EM)

Based on Joshua Johnson's 1897 oil-on-canvas painting called "The Westwood Children," this article offers a full-color reproduction and lesson plan designed to introduce students in the primary grades to early American portraiture. (JDH)

A model for the teaching of aesthetic dialogue to intermediate grade students is presented. One outcome of children discussing the aesthetic structure of art is that they transfer this learning and structure to other areas of their life. (Author/RM)

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…