Teaching+Visual+Literacy+-+Further+Questions


 * Thoughts and Questions:**

Whether texts in the visual literacy genre (comic, anime, political cartoons, etc) stand on equal footing with canonical, print only texts (i.e. Mark Twain, Dickens, etc), or will ever be placed in the canon? Will they always be on the sidelines, forever benched? What characteristics put these canonical texts in the canon in the first place, and what characteristics could potentially exclude visual literacy texts from the canon?
 * General Themes, Whole Book Questions:**

Is this new push towards teaching visual literacy emerging because educators are finally seeing the literary value in these new texts, or is it because educators are pressured to adapt to an evolving media landscape? Is this really the only way to connect to their students in this digital world? Do the ends justify the means? Is teaching kids to read, and be fluent in multiple literacies the end goal no matter what texts get them there?


 * Chapters 1-5 Thoughts and Comments**

Chapter 1

The author comments on effective PowerPoint presentations, saying that the best way to deliver a message is to, "Show the image, then narrate the information that you want to anchor to that image." I agree. I think that the biggest gaff that most presenters make is that they say TOO much (essentially reading what's on the slide verbatim, then offering commentary).

Chapter 2

Is it ever appropriate to use a violent graphic novel in your classroom? Many of the well-known graphic novels ("The Dark Knight," "Watchmen," "The Killing Joke," "Sin City") are extremely violent. I think these texts will "hook" students because of the familiarity and the controversy surrounding them, but I can't really see at the moment how I could justify the blatant violence to concerned parents.

Chapter 3

I wonder if graphic novels can be a way to introduce minority voices and writers into the classroom without necessarily taking time away from the "canon." This format could be an excellent way to bring in varied authors and topics that would normally be a tough sell for the administration.

Chapter 4

I really like the idea of using anime, but I think we need to be careful not to rely too heavily on American-produced anime. I think it's self-defeating to incorporate a new medium, especially one that supposedly authentically represents a different culture, if that medium is wholly created by Americans and for Americans. So as teachers we need to do a little extra research to anime is from overseas.

Chapter 5

Visual literacy a double-edged sword. It can grab the interest of struggling readers, but at the same time, I worry that texts with heavy visuals could discourage students from using their own imagination when they read print-only texts. I think comic books, etc. should be used simultaneously with print-only texts so the students can practice "envisioning" the landscape of a book without being dependent on someone else's vision.


 * Chapter 6-9 Thoughts and Comments **

Chapter 6

There is no doubt that political cartoons are important. Do they have a place in the English classroom? Is it important for English teachers to teach "cartoon literacy" and up to history teachers to employ the use of such cartoons in their classrooms? I think this is a good example of where teachers need to be in communication and bring in material from many classes at once.

Chapter 7

Are these descriptions (character depictions in a picture book) often missing from the text as a space saver? Are they often the purpose of the illustration? What kind of feedback and dynamic is required for a child to understand what is not written? How does this change with age?

There is a really interesting body of research looking at dialogic questioning. This means that when parents read with their children how do they interact, what types of questions do they ask about the book and what is going on? Literally in the words and in the pictures and figuratively with what is not being depicted. This research is branching out into the idea of dialogic questioning with video.

Chapter 8

Do you think adding this much analysis into film takes away the pleasure of watching? How do you think film is used now? As a reward for reading the book? In an attempt to reach students who, we as teachers know, didn't read the book?

Chapter 9

I had never really thought about visual literacies being a key to helping students with disabilities. However, the more I think about it, the more it makes sense. Children with Autism, for example, doing incredibly well with picture boards regarding their activities and schedules, why not incorporate more visuals into the classroom. Why does it seem that visuals lose their place in the classroom as we move on from elementary -- middle -- high school? I think back to how "cool" it was to be an advanced enough reader to read a "chapter book", now with this push towards visual literacy, how does that change? What are our cultural conceptions of "chapter books" with pictures?