Assessment of 60 children (ages 9-15) with learning disabilities resulted in a group with relatively intact visual planning and mental flexibility skills and a group clearly dysfunctional in these areas. Comparison of the two subtypes on measures of academic skills, visual memory, visual-motor integration, and motor speed indicated significant…

Discusses the theory and research underlying the use of realistic and compressed images or representational images developed from 1950-80 using print, slides, and film media. Topics include the theories of visual realism, visual realism and instruction, and the foundations of visual compression. (20 references) (KRN)

Focuses on ways in which a group of high school students responded to fine art and other forms of visual culture, such as advertising images, cartoons, and propaganda posters. Discusses three emergent themes in student responses: (1) purposes of imagery; (2) interpretation of images; and (3) relationships among images. (DSK)

Addresses visual literacy and instructional-design issues as they relate to teaching courses via two-way interactive television (ITV). Based on an ITV course at St. Cloud State University (Minnesota), discusses trends in distance learning; guidelines for instructional design, transparencies, printed materials, and computer-delivered presentations;…

Provides a profile of Paul Robert Wendt who was interested in using technology to teach students how to succeed in higher education by improving library and information skills. Highlights include his educational background; work in films; teaching in higher education at Southern Illinois University (SIU); work in programmed instruction and visual…

Visual images are not simply embodiments of social reality; they are indeed ideological sites embedded with powerful discursive sociopolitical meanings that exert strong influences on the ways in which people live their lives. The author of this paper describes the Ad-Deconstruction Project, which challenged students to integrate aesthetic…

Films in English are extremely challenging for those studying English as a foreign language. In this study, an attempt was made to make an English film more comprehensible by asking subjects to read an abridged version of the novel the film was based on before seeing the film. Subjects reported that reading the book first increased…

Objective: Students will identify several unique characteristics of verbal vs. visual messages, including the superior ability of language to communicate objective, factual, philosophical content in past, present, and future terms; and the superior ability of visual images to communicate social-emotional meaning and concrete information limited in…

This handbook, written for teachers, art teachers, and parents of young children, describes actual elementary school classroom experiences. Each anecdote is juxtaposed with a simple explanation of its philosophical and psychological rationale. Symbolic representation of the environment through art making is seen as a natural language, a…

The speech contained in this document originally accompanied a slide presentation on the altered photographic image. The discussion examines the links between photographic tradition and contemporary visual imaging, the current transformation of visual imaging by the computer, and the effects of digital imaging on visual arts. Photography has a…

This paper defines visual literacy, provides a synopsis of the current research on political awareness among today's youth, and shows how using political cartoons with children and adolescents will enhance their political cognition. It introduces the political cartoon, defining and describing what makes a political cartoon particularly effective…

This paper illustrates and explains the relationship between drawing ability and spatial and visual-perceptual ability; it defines those terms and explores their connection to intelligence and information processing as well as their potential implications for education and training. Discussion covers results of recent studies, which suggest that…

A picture can be interpreted in different ways by various persons. There is often a difference between a picture's denotation (literal meaning), connotation (associative meaning), and private associations. Two studies were conducted in order to observe the private associations that pictures awaken in people. One study deals with associations made…

The interactive multimedia application described here attempts to provide learners and teachers with a common frame of reference for communicating about visual media. The system is based on a list of concepts related to composition, and illustrates those concepts with photographs, paintings, graphic designs, and motion picture scenes. The ability…

The purpose of this in-progress study is to try to find commonalities between visual proficiency and artistic performance. In order to assess visual proficiency, a test of spatial ability is being developed and pilot tested. Student performance on the test will be recorded and examined in relation to two traditional measures of student art…