| The purpose of this study was to review the research, programs and practices, and theories of visual literacy to determine the theoretical foundations of visual literacy. Many diverse groups have used the term visual literacy to fit their own needs, but no one has fully developed a theory of visual literacy, especially in light of recent research on mental imagery, visual thinking, dual coding and symbolic systems. The assumption of this study was that visual literacy is important in education and its theoretical origins deserve elucidation.;Much of the research in visual literacy has centered on teaching visual literacy skills using different types of media, i.e., film or "Photo-Story Discovery Sets," or teaching visual literacy concepts within the context of a discipline, i.e., English or reading. The work of John Debes stressed the need for developing the skill of sequencing pictures and organizing ideas. The translation of information from verbal mode to visual mode was another important research aspect of visual literacy. Many researchers have used visual literacy to improve reading and writing skills, and some have found that learning visual literacy skills helped improve a student's self-concept.;Four themes emerged from the research found in programs and practices: (1) The emphasis on training in visual literacy to control the media rather than allowing the media to control the individual. (2) The commercial influence on visual literacy programs and development. (3) The development and emphasis on self-perception through visual literacy programs and practices. (4) The active or participatory role of the student in visual literacy programs.;The theoretical foundations of visual literacy have not been clearly stated and are not strongly evident in the literature. A model of the theoretical foundations of visual literacy showing the link between theories in linguistics, art, psychology and philosophy and theories in visual literacy was presented. Because of the way the concept of visual literacy developed, it was necessary to use theories from these other disciplines to construct a theory on visual literacy. Art philosopher, Rudolf Arnheim, provided the crux of the visual literacy concept with his ideas on visual thinking while Colin Murray Turbayne, a philosopher, had the most influence on developing a theory for visual literacy with his defense of a visual language.;From the survey of research, programs and practices, and theories on visual literacy a definition for visual literacy was proposed: Visual literacy is the ability to understand (read) and use (write) images and to think and learn in terms of images. Three principles were included with the proposed definition. (1) Visuals are a language and thus analogous to verbal language, hence the term visual literacy. (2) A visually literate person should be able to understand (read) images and use (write) visual language. (3) A visually literature person should be able to process information visually in order to think visually. |
