Reference
Frey, N., & Fisher, D., (Eds.). (2008). Teaching visual literacy: Using comic books, graphic novels, Anime, cartoons, and more to develop comprehension and thinking skills. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
A Top Down Approach
Computer games expose students and indeed remedial students to higher order thinking skills which remedial and content area teachers do not presume them to be capable. This is a summary of a comment that I read in Frey & Fisher (2008) in the context of students designing comics and adhering to the specifications for creating comics. One relevant higher order thinking skill that comes to mind is summarizing. What motivational reading support we will be providing our students with visual-spatial qualities!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Hi Anita
ReplyDeleteAccording to Vacca, Vacca & Mraz (2011) the new literacies are transforming how our students read and write and this is no different in the area of comics especially for our boys who love the visual representation of comics as a strong motivator for reading and writing.
These new literacies have a very visual and social content which appeals to teens today (they are visual and social learners). This points the direction we as teachers must take in order to strengthen their literacy education and so prepare them for the digital age.
We need to extend the traditional print literacy by integrating web technology--Here are some websites that do comics online with a twist
BitStrips
Makebeliefscomix
ZimmerTwins
Hope you find the time to explore and enjoy these sites and see how easy it is to bring visual literacy to students
Hi Anita,
ReplyDeleteI am also of the opinion that computer games can provide a phlethora of tools and skills to our students-if we can use them well. Some teachers and educationalists believe that computer software and games offer the potential to "personalise" learning by allowing pupils to learn at their own pace and have more control over how they learn.
It may sound outlandish, but there is an
increasing consensus that computer games
should be taken seriously as both learning and
assessment tools.
In fact, Henry Jenkins of MIT describes computer games as ‘the most powerful learning technology of our age’. In order to fully exploit this potential, we need to think creatively about what education and
gaming might look like in the future. We
need to acknowledge that changes to
assessment techniques and the curriculum
might be required. We need to acknowledge
that the games industry has to develop its
reputation beyond its sometimes perceived
obsession with first-person-shoot-outs and
explore the wider and more complex realms
of human activity. We need to acknowledge
that new ways of working and whole new
forms of collaboration will be required
between our entertainment and education
sectors, and that this in turn may require
new economic and commercial models to
be developed.