LESSON 6: Evaluating Messages and Images

Words and pictures can communicate more powerfully than either alone.

-William Albert Allark

A. Examine the images that follow.

(1)

Source: https://www.google.com.ph/search?q=images+of+mcdonalds+advertisements&tbm=isch&imgil

(2)
Source: https://www.google.com.ph/search

B. Choose one picture above and then answer the following questions about the
picture:

1. What do you see?

2. What do you think is the purpose of the image? What are the most important visual
elements in the image?

3. What might have motivated the artist to illustrate this?

4. To whom do you think the artist is trying to inform or persuade?

5. What information does the artist want to tell you?

Critical readers, thinkers, and writers get intellectually involved. They recognize that
meanings and values are made, not found, so they pose pertinent questions, note
significant features, examine relationships, and consider credibility of what they read,
see, and hear.
When you read critically, for example, you recognize the literal meaning of the text,
make inferences about implicit or unstated meanings, and then make your own
judgements in response.

Most people are thinking of words on a printed page whenever they talk about reading
texts. However, advances in technology have made it easier than ever to receive
information in a variety of ways. It is essential to be able to “read” critically not just
written texts but visuals, sounds, and spoken texts as well. Text refers to works that
readers, viewers, or listeners invest with meaning that can be critically analyzed.
These texts can also be termed as messages.

Visual images help the reader read and understand texts. Visual information can
support reading and help make meaning of text. Visual images in the world today are
increasing and becoming important as most information is presented as combination
of words and images. It is essential that you as students not only have the capacity
to derive literal meaning from texts but also to develop an understanding of how the
texts are produced.

Visual literacy is the ability to decode, interpret, create, question, challenge, and
evaluate texts that communicate with visual images as well as, or rather than, words.
Visually literate people can read the intended meaning in a visual text, interpret the
purpose and intended meaning, and evaluate the form, structure and features of the
text. As students, you should learn to critically analyze the visual texts and the socio-
cultural contexts surrounding the information.

Contextual understandings are relevant to the study of both written and visual texts.
• Texts can be based on either fact or fiction.
• The use of language depends on shared cultural understandings.
• A text may have different meanings to different people.

The image in the Lesson Opener has the text “Welcome Back to School” and the
prominent objects that can be seen in the image are pencils in a cup, papers on tray,
and an alarm clock. These objects are familiar to those who have been or are in
school but may not be too relatable to those who have never been or are not in school.
Thus, the text and the image may have different meanings to different people.

When we critically evaluate messages and images, consider the following:

1. Texts or messages. Be skeptical. Just because something is in print does not
mean that it is true. A visual text may be represented in different contexts, or
appropriated for different purposes or effects, especially in advertising. Whenever
possible, ask questions about the following:

• Writer: Who wrote this piece? Who is the writer’s employer? What is the
writer’s occupation? Age? What are his interests and values?
 • Purpose: What do the title and first and last paragraphs (if there is) tell you
about the purpose of this piece? Do the headings provide clues to its
purpose? What do the visuals suggest about its purpose? What might have
motivated the writer to write this? Is the main purpose to inform, to interpret,
to argue, or to accomplish something else (to entertain or to reflect, for
instance)?
• Audience: Whom do you think the writer is trying to inform or persuade?
What kind of knowledge the writer expects his or her audience to have? Is
the writer addressing you or people like you?
• Content: What does the title tell you the piece is about? Does the first
paragraph (if longer) include the main point? What do the headings tell you
about the gist of the piece? Does the conclusion (if there is) say what the
writer has focused on?
• Context: When was the piece published? Is it current? Does the date matter?
What kind of publication was it? (book, article in a periodical, web page,
advertisement, etc.) Where and by whom was it published? If it has been
published electronically, was it posted by the writer? by an organization with
a special interest?

2. Visuals. It is important to critically evaluate images like any other source, such as
journal articles or books, to determine their quality, reliability, and appropriateness.
Images should be evaluated on several levels. Visual analysis is an important step in
evaluating an image and understanding its meaning. It is also important to consider
textual information provided with the image, the image source and original context
of the image, and the technical quality of the image.

The viewer gains meaning from the image or character by associating them with
something more generalized and symbolic. Objects and colors have symbolic
qualities and may appear to different age groups. Consider what strikes you most
about an image at first glance. It could be the mix of colors; disparate objects;
characters, their expressions and body language; settings; use of highlight and
comparative sizes of the subjects; use of camera angles; use of symbols; comic
elements, etc.

To make meaning from the images, the “reader” uses the critical skills of exploration,
critique, and reflection. What is seen with the eye is what is “seen” with the mind.

The following questions can help guide your analysis and evaluation.
• Content: What do you see? What is the image about? Are there people in
the image? What are they doing? How are they presented? Can the image
be looked at different ways? How effective is the image as a visual
message?
• Visual: How is the image composed? What is in the background, and what
is in the foreground? What are the most important visual elements in the
 image? How can you tell? How is color used? Can the image be looked at
different ways? What meanings are conveyed by design choices?
• Context: In what context does the visual appear? What information
accompanies the image? Does the meaning of the text change on how you
see the image? How? Is the textual information intended to be factual and to
inform? Or is it intended to influence what and how you see? What kind of
context does the information provide? Does it answer the questions Where,
How, Why, and For whom was the image made?
• Image: Is it a representation of a real event, person, or thing, or is it fictional?
What does the visual depict? Is the visual accompanied by audio or printed
text? Where did you find the image? What information does the source
provide about the origin of the image? Is the source reliable and trustworthy?
Was the image found in an image database, or was it being used in another
context to convey meaning?
• Technical quality: Is the image large enough to suit your purposes? Are
the color, light, and balance true? Is the image a quality digital image,
without pixilation or distortion? Is the image in a file format you can use?
Are there copyright or other use restrictions you need to consider?

MULTIMODALITY

The concept of visual literacy makes use of multimodal texts. Multimodal, proposed
by Kress and Jewitt in 2003, refers to the integration of different modes of text to
create meaning and to convey messages. The multimodal approach takes into
account how semiotic systems fulfill the purposes of the text, the audience and
context, and how these choices work together in the organization and development
of information and ideas.

Multimodal texts combine two or more semiotic systems.

• Linguistic: vocabulary, generic structure, and the grammar of oral and

written language
• Visual: color, vectors and viewpoint in still and moving images
• Audio: volume, pitch and rhythm of music and sound effects
• Spatial: proximity, direction, position of layout, and organization of objects
in space
• Gestural: movement, speed, and stillness in facial expression and body
language

Multimodal texts can be delivered via different media or technologies. They may be
live, physical (printed paper), or digital (electronic). When your teachers use photos,
magazines, electronic magazines, electronic books, mobile web, video, etc., then
they are using a multimodal teaching approach.
Given that there are more elements involved (contextual, movement, and inevitable
surrounding images and advertisements), electronic text is far more complex than
static printed text. Subsequently, you need to have the appropriate literacy skills to
scrutinize, navigate, search, and draw relevant meaning.

We are now engaged with a broad range of media on a daily basis. These forms of
media can be used as a guide when engaging in visual literacy concepts. Using these
forms properly enables us to make learning relevant and applicable.

• Internet
• Videos
• Television
• Magazines
• Music
• Art
• Games
• Mobile phones

The recent technology of mobile phones means that you can access still and moving
digital imagery, games, Internet, news, music, fashion, text and image messaging, as
well as making phone calls. As college students, you are responsible when to use
your mobile phones when attending classes and lectures.

PROPOSALS

Contractors bid on building projects. Musicians and educators apply for grants.
Researchers seek funding. Student leaders call for lights on bike paths. Lovers
propose marriage; friends propose sharing dinner and a movie. These are all
examples of proposals: ideas put forward for consideration that say, “Here is a
solution to the problem” or “This is what ought to be done. “All proposals are
arguments: when you propose something, you are trying to persuade others to see
a problem in a particular way and to accept your solution to the problem.

Key Features

1. A well-defined problem. Any written proposal must establish at the outset that
there is a problem --- and that it’s serious enough to require a solution.

2. A recommended solution. Once you have defined the problem, you need to
describe the solution you are suggesting and to explain it in enough detail for
readers to understand what you are proposing.

3. A convinced argument for your proposed solution. You need to convince

the readers that your solution is feasible --- and that it is the best way to solve
 the problem. Sometimes you’ll want to explain in detail the steps needed to enact
a proposal.

4. Anticipate questions. You may need to consider any questions readers may
have about your proposal--- and to show how its advantages outweigh any
disadvantages.

5. A call to action. The goal of a proposal is to persuade readers to accept your

proposed solution. This solution may include asking readers to take action.

6. An appropriate tone. Since you’re trying to persuade readers to act, your tone
is important --- readers will always react better to a reasonable, respectful
presentation than to anger or self-righteousness.

Ways of Organizing a Proposal

You can organize your proposal in various ways, but always you will begin by
establishing that there is a problem. You may then consider several solutions
before recommending one particular solution. Sometimes, however, you might
suggest only a single solution.

A. Several possible solutions

1. Introduce and explain the problem.

2. Identify possible solutions and consider their pros and cons one by one.
3. Propose a solution and give reasons why it is best.
4. Call for action or reiterate your prosed action.

OR

B. A single solution

1. Introduce and explain the problem.

2. Explain the proposed solution.
3. Give reasons why it is the best solution.
Then, anticipate and answer questions.
4. Call for action or reiterate your proposal.

Source: Cuerda, F. & Pilapil, E. Purposive Communication in the New General

Education Curriculum, c2017.