How Can Visual Literacy Support English Language Teaching?

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How Can Visual Literacy Support English Language Teaching?
1)
Suryanto
suryanto99@yahoo.com.au
Abstract: Visually literate persons are able to understand, to create and to use images as a means of expression
and communication. Understanding the elements, the meanings, and the natures of visual images may lead
visually literate persons to be able to use the images for the purpose of teaching English. Integrating the visual
images in the steps of teaching learning process may create better learning atmosphere that trigger the students'
higher achievement. This paper is aimed to elaborate the nature of visual literacy and the integration of visual
literacy component in teaching English.
Keywords:Visual literacy, English language teaching, meaning of images, elements of images, steps of teaching
learning process
Abstrak: Orang yang melek secara visual mampu memahami, menciptakan, dan mengunakan gambar sebagai
alat untuk berekspresi dan berkomunikasi. Dengan memahami serangkaian elemen, arti, dan sifat gambar visual,
orang yang melek secara visual mampu mengunakan gambar untuk tujuan pengajaran Bahasa Inggris. Dengan
mengintegrasikan gambar visual dalam langkah-langkah belajar mengajar, atmosfir pembelajaran akan tercipta
lebih baik dan mendorong peserta didik untuk meraih prestasi lebih tinggi. Paper ini dimaksudkan untuk
mengelaborasi tentang karakteristik melek visual dan pengintegrasian komponen melek visual dalam pengajaran
bahasa Inggris.
Kata kunci: Literasi visual, pembelajaran Bahasa Inggris, makna gambar, bagian gambar, tahapan proses
pembelajaran
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1)A Lecturer of English Education Department of Muhammadiyah University, Yogyakarta.
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The undeniably role of English as a global natural or man-made, that he encounters in
means of communication has triggered almost all his environment. Through the creative use
countries in the world accommodating English as of these competencies, he is able to
one of the subjects in their educational communicate with others. Through
curriculum. Teaching English, then, becomes creative use of these competencies, he is
one of the focuses of the governments to facilitate able to comprehend and enjoy the
their citizens in order to be globally literate by masterworks of visual communications”
building their English language literacy. (Fransecky & Debes, 1992, p.7).
However, teachers as the fore-front actors to
realize this effort must face various challenges to Seel (1994) defined visual literacy as an
foster their students to master English well. In aptitude to conduct visual communication, visual
this respect, teachers then need resources, skills, thinking, and visual learning. Visual thinking
knowledge and expertise to overcome every according to Kovalik and King (2011) refers to
obstacle they face. Their visual literacy may help the ability of a person to use pictures, colours,
themselves coping with the problems in their diagrams, other elements to represent his views,
teaching. Visual literacy may help teachers notions and information that assist him to
design teaching learning process more attractive communicate the information. Meanwhile,
with which students would be more engaged in visual communication is a circumstance when
learning. As a result, the students will end up with pictures, graphics, and other images are
good English language mastery. This writing employed to prompt thoughts and to teach
would like to explore through literature review people. In this case, the counterpart in the
how teachers' visual literacy may enhance communication must be able to understand what
teachers to design better English language the image means to effectively communicate.
teaching and learning processes in the class. Then, the visual learning can be addressed to the
process of learning from pictures and media. This
What is visual literacy? includes when learners understand knowledge by
Many experts had made every effort to define seeing visual image.
what visual literacy is. Yet, they still have their In a brief way, based on various definition of
various ideas on the definition (Avgerinou & visual literacy, Messaris and Moriarty (2005,
Ericson, 1997; Messaris & Moriaty, 2005). p.482) highlighted that there were two main
Debes was historically the pioneer in raising the components embodied in visual literacy: 'the
issue of visual literacy and defined the term ability to understand visual images and the ability
visual literacy as 'a set of competences owned by to create or use images as a means of expression
a person to discriminate and interpret the visible and communication'. In other words, in order to
actions, objects and symbols, natural or man- be visually literate, one must be able to
made, that he encounters in his environment, and understand what images are, and to create or use
to apply the competences to communicate with them for certain purposes.
others and to appreciate visual texts' (Arizpe &
Styles, 2003, p. 39-40). Referring to the National Understanding visual images
Conference of Visual Literacy, visual literacy is Understanding visual images may take place
defined as: in two sequences (Messaris & Moriaty, 2005).
“a group of vision-competencies a The first is to understand a sign, an image, or a
human being can develop by seeing and graphic representation through basic perceptual
at the same time having and integrating standards of what we see to acquire the meaning
other sensory experiences. The develop- from the perceptual vision. The second may refer
ment of these competencies is fundamen- to the ability to view critically the images in terms
tal to normal human learning. When of how the image creator manipulates them.
developed, they enable a visually literate Through basic perceptual standards in visual
person to discriminate and interpret the communication, images may compose at least
visible actions, objects, and symbols ten elements: dot, line, shape, direction, tone,
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Suryanto, Visual literacy in supporting ELT 41
having better understanding toward the subjects the interactional routines can be subcategorized
the students learn. into service activities (job interviews) and social
activities (social gathering, birthday party, etc.).
Visual images in Teaching listening To run such routines, speakers needs to have
Listening is important in foreign language conversational management and negotiating
classrooms (Nunan, 1999). It gains recognition meaning skills (Bygates, 1987).
when the theory of comprehensible input To build speaking ability, teachers may
proposed by Krashen (1982) came into fashion develop the student skill to carry out the
mentioning that in order to be able to produce a information and interaction routines as
good output, students need to have a mentioned above. Visual images are very much
comprehensive input. In this respect, listening helpful to support the students to practice the
skill should be mastered by students for the language as indicated by many books that
reason that this skill can equip students with contain exercises for speaking practice
abilities to encode inputs. accommodate the visual images (Klippel, 1991;
In teaching listening skills, a teacher should Ladousse, 1994).
provide materials that enable the students to
understand them properly to build thorough Visual images for teaching reading skills
knowledge in their minds. Schema theory Comparing the printed-based texts and
proposed by Bartlett (1932) arguing that multimodal texts, texts which may incorporate
knowledge of man comprises of interrelated spoken or written language, still or moving
schemata that functions as unbroken units. Based images, Walsh (2011) found differences between
on this theory, to create listening materials, the two texts. The multimodal texts incorporate
teachers need to prepare a holistic picture of the many modes of delivering meanings with which
contents since the knowledge schema works readers find them useful to understand the texts
holistically as unbroken units. comprehensively. Therefore, teaching reading
Teachers can create holistic listening materials skills by incorporating visual component will be
more comprehensively by adding visual helpful for the student because visual
components in the materials. Adding such components can become the tools for students to
components can support students to understand learn to understand ideas and to learn in new
the listening lessons sufficiently. A listening ways (Zoss, 2009).
study with three experimental groups indicated
that a group with a visual aid of a concept map Visual images for teaching writing skills
possessed superior comprehension (Nunan, For teaching academic writing, Baratta &
1999). In short, to facilitate better learning Jones (2008) conducted a study to include visual
outcome, visually literate teachers should design images in their teaching. After six week pilot
listening materials by integrating visual programme, they found that students found
components in their teaching processes to serve useful to have visual teaching methods and at the
better student understanding end of the program, the study indicated that
average students' performance increased. Such a
Visual images in teaching speaking condition is supported by Zoss (2009) who stated
Bygate (1987) proposed that the purpose of that incorporating visual art in teaching is a
speaking conversationally can be analysed in promising endeavour.
terms of routines, the common methods of
expressing information. In this case, Bygate Principles of integrating visual images in
(1987) classified routines into information teaching English
routines and interactional routines. Information As mentioned above that integrating visual
routines comprise of expository activities (giving image in teaching English skills, listening,
direction, telling a story, comparing something) speaking, reading and writing, is promising for
and evaluative activities (making inference, the success of the teaching. Besides, being
giving judgment, predicting, etc.). Meanwhile, visually literate in the sense that teachers should

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be able to understand, create and use visual learning achievement may not be portrayed
images, teachers should be also be aware of some appropriately. Related to social communities,
principle to integrate the visuals images. the educational institutions should build mutual
Meredith (1947) mentioned some principles of relationship by disseminating to them any
integrating visual images in teaching English: (1) required information with intention that they
The teacher must make adaptation to the may support any teaching learning program that
available resources. (2) The visual images be entail the communities' participation.
precisely related to a particular task in the
learning process. (3) A balance must be Conclusion
maintained between all the different elements in Visual literacy components may be integrated
the learning process and (4) teachers should in English language teaching. Visually literate
develop student's self-reliance to anticipate their teachers are capable of choosing or creating
use of the language in real contexts. visual images and use them to enhance the
students' achievement in learning. Under-
Some consideration in integrating visual standing the meaning and the characteristic of
literacy components visuals image is important for teachers in order
Some components may be taken into accounts that they may integrate in some steps of teaching
to ensure the smooth running in integrating the learning processes whether they are in the stages
visual literacy components: space, an agent of of pre-teaching, while teaching or post-teaching
learning and teaching, display learning, in their teaching English language skill:
assessment, social community (Heath, 2000). listening, speaking, reading and writing. To
The classroom as a space for study should be ensure the success of integration of visual
redefined as not only a cubical space. It should be teaching, some principles and some consi-
expanded to the place where study may take derations on space of teaching, the role of the
place like museum, garden, and other outer students, display learning facilities, assessment,
spaces that enable the students to study the and social communities need to be taken into
subjects assigned in the curriculum. In such account.
spaces, teachers may design better visually-
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