The language of pictures: Visual literacy and print materials for Adult Basic Education and Training (ABET)

Arbuckle, Katherine

doi:10.1080/10228190408566228

Cited by 11 publications

(13 citation statements)

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“…In developing countries such as South Africa, where almost two-thirds of the population cannot read basic health-education materials, a solution is often sought through visual media (Arbuckle, 2004). In health campaigns across the world visuals are used where the written word fails to communicate effectively -usually to supplement, extend or reinforce oral instructions (see Doak, Doak & Root, 1996;Mayeaux, Murphy, Arnold, Davis, Jackson & Sentell, 1996).…”

Section: Using Visuals To Promote Hiv Education For Lowliterate1 Audimentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Using Visuals To Promote Hiv Education For Lowliterate1 Audimentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Finally, visuals are poorly equipped to express animation (moving elements, ctions, event sequences) as well as modalities and speech acts (can, must, should, etc.) (Colle & Glass, 1986; Linney, 1995;Hoffmann, 2000; PATH, 2002;Arbuckle, 2004).A systematic and reliable account of the effect of visuals in a low-literate health context is lacking, however, due to a large number of complexities associated with this type of research. First, there is a striking absence of a sound theory on the relationship between the characteristics of visuals on the one hand and the processing of visuals by low-literate audiences on the other.…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Visuals can be misunderstood due to differences in culture and background (Tomaselli & Tomaselli, 1984; TrippReimer & Afifi, 1989;Cornwall, 1992;Bradley, 1995;Doak et al, 1996). They can also be too difficult due to graphical conventions, such as depth perspective, speech balloons and metaphoric or mathematical symbols (Colle & Glass, 1986;Bradley, 1995; Linney, 1995;Doak et al, 1996;Hoffmann, 2000; PATH, 2002;Arbuckle, 2004). Finally, visuals are poorly equipped to express animation (moving elements, ctions, event sequences) as well as modalities and speech acts (can, must, should, etc.)…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The most poorly educated adults, those with the lowest literacy levels, suffer the highest rates of morbidity and mortality from chronic diseases and conditions (National Work Group on Literacy and Health, 1989;Plimpton & Root, 1994;Rudd, Moeykens & Colton, (1999). One reason for this correlation is that if people cannot understand available healthcare information, they are unable to improve their health by changing potentially harmful behaviours.In developing countries such as South Africa, where almost two-thirds of the population cannot read basic health-education materials, a solution is often sought through visual media (Arbuckle, 2004). In health campaigns across the world visuals are used where the written word fails to communicate effectively -usually to supplement, extend or reinforce oral instructions (see Doak, Doak & Root, 1996;Mayeaux, Murphy, Arnold, Davis, Jackson & Sentell, 1996).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Understanding visuals in HIV/AIDS education in South Africa: differences between literate and low-literate audiences

Carstens¹,

Maes²,

Gangla-Birir³

2006

African Journal of AIDS Research

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This article reports on a research project aimed at determining the scope and nature of differences in picture comprehension between literate and low-literate audiences in the context of HIV and AIDS. Structured interviews were held with 30 low-literate and 24 literate adult speakers of African languages. The responses were coded and analysed both qualitatively and quantitatively. Consistent with previous research, we found that purely analogical visuals pose relatively few interpretation problems across the literacy spectrum. Literate and low-literate respondents recognised human beings and familiar analogous objects equally successfully. The interpretation of abstract items was problematic for respondents at both literacy levels, but relatively more so for low-literate respondents. Purely symbolic or conventional abstract elements, such as speech and thought balloons, and purely mathematical symbols are difficult for low-literate individuals since they do not have any analogical residue that will trigger relevant meaning aspects of the visual. Metaphors are difficult when they require culture-specific knowledge. The results strongly suggest that designers should exploit the expressive power of the human body in constructing (abstract) meaning. All humans have comparable experiences with associated basic actions and bodily expressions. Therefore, facial expressions and body postures and positions are powerful in transferring complex messages. We advise that pictorial metaphors, art styles that distort objects, complex pictures with partially symbolic content, as well as abstract symbols borrowed from written language should be omitted where possible.Keywords: abstract meaning, analogical visuals, symbolic visuals, pictorial metaphor, picture comprehension Using visuals to promote HIV education for lowliterate1 audiencesEffective communication is essential for health promotion and disease prevention. People need to understand health information to apply it to their own behaviour. Davis, Crouch, Wills, Miller & Abdehou (1990) regard comprehension as the most important of the literacy skills used in healthcare. These authors found in their research in the United States that the average reading comprehension of public clinic patients was at the 6th-grade level, whereas most tested materials for patient-education required an 11th-to 14th-grade reading level. Forty percent of the public clinic patients tested were reading below a 5th-grade level and could be considered 'severely illiterate' (see Plimpton & Root, 1994).The situation in South Africa is comparable. Basic instructional materials on health issues (including HIV and AIDS) have a readability level of just below 60, which is equivalent to Grade 9 (Carstens & Snyman, 2003), while more than 70% of the South African population have only marginal reading skills: 30% are functionally illiterate and 40% have limited skills (Carstens, 2004; Project Literacy, 2004). A compounding factor is that, as a rule, 30-50% of low-literate patients read three to five years be...

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Section: Using Visuals To Promote Hiv Education For Lowliterate1 Audimentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Using Visuals To Promote Hiv Education For Lowliterate1 Audimentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Understanding visuals in HIV/AIDS education in South Africa: differences between literate and low-literate audiences

Carstens¹,

Maes²,

Gangla-Birir³

2006

African Journal of AIDS Research

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Assessing Refugee-Background Adult Second Language Learners with Emerging Literacy: How a Social Semiotic Analysis Reveals Hidden Assumptions of Test Design

Flores

Jenna²

2021

Educational Linguistics

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Making Space for Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education in Teacher Education

DeCapua

Marshall

2022

Educational Linguistics

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The language of pictures: Visual literacy and print materials for Adult Basic Education and Training (ABET)

Cited by 11 publications

References 1 publication

Understanding visuals in HIV/AIDS education in South Africa: differences between literate and low-literate audiences

Understanding visuals in HIV/AIDS education in South Africa: differences between literate and low-literate audiences

Assessing Refugee-Background Adult Second Language Learners with Emerging Literacy: How a Social Semiotic Analysis Reveals Hidden Assumptions of Test Design

Making Space for Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education in Teacher Education

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