Images can be and have been used in various ways, and by their man-made nature they cannot be considered independent of their providers' intentions. Yet, identifying such intentions is complex, and requires a critical look supported by relevant information on what is being represented, how, and why. In this article, the author illustrates some of…

Aquarium views, or AqViews, offer a glimpse into a split-phase aquatic system that is not normally afforded to terrestrial viewers. Although geologist Henry De la Beche created the AqView prototype two decades before the advent of the aquarium, this graphic type did not become popular until after the Victorian aquarium craze. We investigate the…

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…

Beginning with an understanding of visual culture as a postmodern discourse, this article argues for more focused attention to how visual culture presents a critical rethinking of subjectivity within art education. Through an analysis of a language of bombardment, a discourse that positions the subject as bombarded by media messages, this article…

Media programs like hip-hop music videos are powerful aesthetic agents that inspire teenagers. Thus, they have tremendous influence on young people's identity formation, lifestyle choices, and knowledge construction which are manifested in the ways teens dress, express themselves, behave, and interact with each other. However, because of the…

The application of digital storytelling to art education is an interdisciplinary, inquiry-based, hands-on project that integrates the arts, education, local communities, technology, and storytelling. Through digital storytelling, students develop and apply multiliteracy skills, aesthetic sensitivities, and critical faculties to address greater…

Art history is a hybrid discipline that combines the verbal with the visual, yet the limiting verbal approach traditionally has defined the field. Another problem at the university level is that different types of classes define visually literacy differently; for example, art education programs emphasize perceptual and cognitive angles while art…

Past uses of art reproductions in schools and mass media publications are described, along with political, economic, and aesthetic issues raised by such usage. The presentation focuses on concerns associated with present and future educational use of reproductions, whether electronic or some other form. Issues of selectivity and aesthetics are…

Teaching television production for media literacy. (CH)

Based on the notion that technological and artistic developments in the area of television production affect viewers' comprehension and appreciation of televised programs, this essay examines the impact of telecommunication advances on the industry. The first section briefly considers the technological advances of the last decade in major TV…

Treating the camera as an information technology, this essay shows how the camera is a powerful theoretical disquisition on the nature of form, realism, and scientific vision. The first section presents a history of form, separate from matter, as something collectible in a library or museum. The second section discusses the photograph as a rival…

How the Northeast Regional Center for the Deaf developed a program designed to teach middle-school aged children how to communicate using visual media. (Author)

Insights the author gained during the course of an educational development project in Latin America. (Author)

Explores some of the issues and ideas for training high school students in the language of the mass media. (RB)