Visual Literacy

As I reviewed the request from our Group Project, there was desire to "develop a deeper understanding of visual literacy.." as well as how should "schools & colleges incorporate visual literacy courses into their curricula?"

I was curious as to what standards, missions, and/or statements there were regarding information technology and visual literacy.

From the American Library Association (ALA):

Information Literacy and Information Technology

Information literacy is related to information technology skills, but has broader implications for the individual, the educational system, and for society. Information technology skills enable an individual to use computers, software applications, databases, and other technologies to achieve a wide variety of academic, work-related, and personal goals. Information literate individuals necessarily develop some technology skills.

Information literacy, while showing significant overlap with information technology skills, is a distinct and broader area of competence. Increasingly, information technology skills are interwoven with, and support, information literacy. A 1999 report from the National Research Council promotes the concept of "fluency" with information technology and delineates several distinctions useful in understanding relationships among information literacy, computer literacy, and broader technological competence. The report notes that "computer literacy" is concerned with rote learning of specific hardware and software applications, while "fluency with technology" focuses on understanding the underlying concepts of technology and applying problem-solving and critical thinking to using technology. The report also discusses differences between information technology fluency and information literacy as it is understood in K-12 and higher education. Among these are information literacy’s focus on content, communication, analysis, information searching, and evaluation; whereas information technology "fluency" focuses on a deep understanding of technology and graduated, increasingly skilled use of it. 2

"Fluency" with information technology may require more intellectual abilities than the rote learning of software and hardware associated with "computer literacy", but the focus is still on the technology itself. Information literacy, on the other hand, is an intellectual framework for understanding, finding, evaluating, and using information--activities which may be accomplished in part by fluency with information technology, in part by sound investigative methods, but most important, through critical discernment and reasoning. Information literacy initiates, sustains, and extends lifelong learning through abilities which may use technologies but are ultimately independent of them.

From the International Visual Literacy Association, they have developed a mission as well as standards that can be found at www.ivla.org I was not able to view these from their site but am wondering if our professor is already a member that we could look at their documents.

From the National Council of English Teachers:


To participate in a global society, we continue to extend our ways of communicating. Viewing and visually representing (defined in the NCTE/IRA Standards for the English Language Arts) are a part of our growing consciousness of how people gather and share information. Teachers and students need to expand their appreciation of the power of print and nonprint texts. Teachers should guide students in constructing meaning through creating and viewing nonprint texts. Be it, therefore "Resolved, that the National Council of Teachers of English through its publications, conferences, and affiliates support professional development and promote public awareness of the role that viewing and visually representing our world have as forms of literacy."

What strikes me about NCTE's statement is that they state to participate in the global society, people will have a growing consciousness of how information is gathered and shared in mulitiple ways. Not surprisingly, this one statement is imbedded in all five questions that were to be addressed by the planning group.

The fact that the NCTE has stated that visually literacy is indeed a form of literacy makes our task even more important: Will Drupal be an effective content management system in the age of visual literacy?