After a semester of Visual Literacy, I have gained an increased knowledge on how visual literacy can help me create, understand, classify, and appreciate visuals. Below are some general websites that expand on what visual literacy is, why it's important, and how it affects everyone. Visual Literacy How to Speack Out (Visually) at your Library Visual Literacy Standards
Visual Literacy is more than just "reading" visuals; it's about acquiring the right knowledge necessary to creatively produce, read, and critic visuals. Technology has made it easier to bombard humankind with a wide variety and plethora of visuals daily. TV commercials, billboards, digital/moving billboards, public transportation, shopping centers, and many more forms of advertising are all over the place, effecting individuals of all ages in their way of thinking and establishing the correct techniques needed for a sense of visual literacy. Visual literacy is important in the classroom, workplace, home, and public locations because visuals influence people without them even realizing at times. Visuals also can enhance or hinder learning in schools and workplaces depending on the visual and how visual literate the viewer(s) and creator are.
The information I have learned and the knowledge I have gained through this class has helped me to create, understand, classify, and appreciate visuals. I have become more aware of the visuals around me, and what ads (and other visuals) are trying to convey (what is the message this is trying to express?) Overall, the experiences I have had in this class (watching movies, Save the World Project, Hope project, chapter presentations and activities, and TEDtalks videos) have helped shaped me into a more visually literate human being. I am more conscious of my actions and what I am conveying in my body language as well as any visuals I create.
As discussed in my first entry, there are many visual symbols that affect me in my everyday life, and there are symbols that represent who I am. Being visual literate can help others realize who I am just by "reading" my visual symbol representations. Below are some visuals that I feel represent me.
