Collection

When Images “Lie”: Critical Visual Literacy

Curated by Danielle Nicole DeVoss
March 09, 2011

More than ever before, we have at our fingertips all sorts of visual media. We’ve always lived in a “visual world,” but the important differences today are that:

1. More people than ever before have access to the tools to create and/or manipulate images.

2. More people than ever before have access to publish and distribute created and/or manipulated images.

And these are very good things! Social media tools and web 2.0 spaces allow all sorts of people to create, to share, to publish, and more.

But these changes—and changes in the ways in which our students see, consume, and approach media—require that we help students be careful, critical analysts of the visual content they see.

What I’ve included here are some historical examples and discussion points, some contemporary examples and discussion points, and some ways to educate ourselves and to engage students in critical visual literacy.

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