This article provides a theoretical exploration of the connections between critical literacy and symbolic competence with some pedagogical examples from an empirical study. More specifically, we argue that critical literacy can be utilised as an approach to develop symbolic competence, and, by extension, encourage intercultural learning. Our…

Through television, many different images of ethnic, cultural, and ability groups are presented. Different people perceive these images in different ways. These perceptions affect how people value themselves and judge and interact with others. This article first summaries research on TV images and people's meaning and reaction to them. Second, it…

This article explores a notion of "personalising learning" which puts the learner at the centre, supported by mobile technology and teacher mediation. It reports a small study in the Northern Territory of Australia, with indigenous students who were given mobile camera phones to capture aspects of their everyday lives and bring them into…

This article demonstrates the potential for critical inquiry in twenty-first century primary classrooms. The authors (two university professors and a first grade teacher) present an overview of theory/practice relationships in Mary's (teacher) multiethnic classroom with an emphasis on critical literacy, technology and multimodal learning. Readers…

Presents annotations of 29 children's books that provide multiple perspectives that range from the viewpoint of the character to stories from a culture, information garnered from extensive research, insights from history, and interpretations of art. (RS)

Developing visuals for a low-literate population is a complex process which must take education, visual literacy, culture, and way of life into account. This article describes cultural barriers to some South Africans' understanding of common pictures used to relate instructions for taking medication, and discusses tactics for modifying and…

This paper is a report of a research project on critical multiliteracies and multimodality in Brazilian education. In the context of a growing concern for the construction of images in contemporary society, the paper discusses the interrelations between image, language and interpretation. The specific object of the investigation described below is…

The positive and negative aspects of using film as a medium for inducing change in developing nations are explored in this issue. Critics of the use of film for development cite (1) the culture specific nature of film content of foreign produced films; (2) the technical, economic, and logistical problems of in-country production; and (3) lack of…

In this study wordless picture books were used to assess cultural differences in three groups of children. (MKM)

Discusses the role of television in constructing social reality and teaching children to participate in society, examining Israeli research on the role of television fiction and news in parent-child interactions. The article notes how family cultures affect the way television is incorporated into the socialization process in all households. (SM)