Presented by Stephanie Beene at the Annual Conference of the Visual Resources Association, April 18th - April 21st, 2012, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Session: Visual Literacy Case Studies The term “visual literacy” was first coined in 1969 by Jack Debes of Kodak, co-founder of the International Visual Literacy Association. According to the Association of College and Research Libraries “Visual Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education,” visual literacy “is a set of abilities that enables an individual to effectively find, interpret, evaluate, use, and create images and visual media. Visual literacy skills equip a learner to understand and analyze the contextual, cultural, ethical, aesthetic, intellectual, and technical components involved in the production and use of visual materials. A visually literate individual is both a critical consumer of visual media and a competent contributor to a body of shared knowledge and culture.” The three case studies in this session will explore (1) implementing visual literacy standards and guidelines at Lewis & Clark College, (2) visual literacy among library and information science students at Wayne State University, and (3) curating and building a collection of image-based art history exam questions at Michigan State University. MODERATOR: John Taormina, Duke University PRESENTERS: • Joan Beaudoin, Wayne State University “A Case Study of Visual Literacy Among Library and Information Science Students.” • Stephanie Beene, Lewis & Clark College “Implementing Visual Literacy Standards and Guidelines at Lewis & Clark.” • Alex Nichols, Michigan State University “Curating Questions: Building a Collection of Image-Based Art History Exam Questions.”

1. Adventures in Seeing:
Critical Engagement with Images
Implementing Visual Literacy Standards & Guidelines
@ Lewis & Clark
Stephanie Beene
Visual Resources Coordinator
Lewis & Clark College
Portland, OR

2. “Viewing… is a process of searching out and understanding a
particular logic and structure, and discerning whatever it is
that makes [an object] unique.”
– Adrian Piper, “Performance and the Fetishism of the Art Object,”
Vanguard 10 (December 1981/January 1982), 16-19.

3. Visual Literacy: Beginning & Premise

4. Involvement with ACRL IRIG VL AG
● The Image Research Interest Group (IRIG) formed around
Sept 2009
● Task Force formed between Dec 2009- March 2010 to define
Visual Literacy and begin work on Standards & Guidelines
● Advisory Group formed in April 2010, of which I became a
part. Our primary role was to provide feedback to the Task
Force through the various drafts
● Kickoff meeting for the Task Force was at ALA, April 2010

5. Involvement with ACRL IRIG VL AG
● Timeline of draft development:
○ Sept 2010: Working definition of VL sent out to the Advisory Group,
no Standards yet
○ Jan 2011: Advisory Group & Task Force review a draft of the
Standards, discuss @ ALA Midwinter virtual meeting
○ Feb 2011: 2nd, revised draft; several virtual meetings followed to
solicit feedback. 3rd draft issued in mid-Feb after feedback gathered.
Public, virtual meeting held in late Feb. 2011
○ May 2011: 4th draft and ALA that April
● The ACRL Board approved the 9/19/2011 version of the
Standards

6. Visual Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education Working Groups
Task Force - Duties: Conduct research, conceptualize the VL standards, write the standards
document, support adoption of the standards
Denise Hattwig (Chair), University of Washington Kaila Bussert, Cornell University
Joanna Burgess, Reed College Ann Medaille, University of Nevada, Reno
Advisory Group- Duties: Guide development of the standards, provide interdisciplinary
perspective and expertise, gather community input, test use of the standards, and make
recommendations
Stephanie Beene, Lewis and Clark College Ellen Petraits, Rhode Island School of Design
Kimberly Bugg, Atlanta University Center Shilpa Rele, University of Miami
Nicolette Bromberg, University of Washington Phyllis Robarts, University of Miami
Tom Caswell, University of Florida Gilda Santana, University of Miami
Patricia Kosco Cossard, University of Maryland Sharon Simes, North Seattle Community College
Richard Graham, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Loanne Snavely, Pennsylvania State University
Trudy Jacoby, Princeton University Tony White, Indiana University
Kathleen Lonbom, Illinois State University Alessia Zanin-Yost, Western Carolina University
Amelia Nelson, Delaware College of Art and Design Sean Connin, NITLE
Jason Lee, OCLC
Information Literacy Consultant: Jill Gremmels, Davidson College

7. The Definition

8. Information Literacy & Visual Literacy
@ Lewis & Clark College
● Watzek Library "Decade in Review" Report, March 2010
○ Research & Instruction Services, focus on IL
○ Visual Resources Center, VL & VR
● Memo from the Library Director to Research Services re:
Information Literacy @ Lewis & Clark, May 2011
● Watzek Agenda, 2011-2012 (Oct. 2011)
● Information Literacy: The Lewis & Clark Perspective (Nov. 2011)
● Instruction Team formation & implementation of assessment and
outcome goals

10. Workshops @ Lewis & Clark
● Faculty Technology Institute, May 2011: Focus on Teaching
Track: "Do you see what I see? Helping Students Critically
Engage with Images"
○ ** Another VL session is planned at this year's FTI (May 2012)**
● E&D Faculty Workshop, Watzek Library: With Instruction
Services Coordinator, Kate Rubick, & Faculty Outreach
Librarian, Dan Kelley (Dec 2011)
○ ** A follow-up workshop is planned for May 2012**
● FTI activity on VL adapted for upper-level course, "Gender &
Aesthetic Expression"(March & April 2012)

11. Activity #1: Look at this picture
for a full minute. Jot down your
first impressions to the following
questions.
What do you see?
What do you think is happening?
Name everything you see in the
image, then look again and
name the underlying emotion,
communications, contexts.
Write a brief narrative caption
based on these impressions.

12. Activity #2: Compare your initial
impressions to the caption
below:
1976 Pulitzer, Spot News.
Boston Fire, photographed by
Stanley J. Forman. July 22,
1975, Boston, MA. Nikon f/8 at
1/250 second, 135 mm lens,
Kodak Tri-X film.
Discussion: How does this
change your impression of the
photo? Do you see anything that
you initially did not?

13. Activity #3: Further context:
Photographer Foreman
remembers “a roaring, roaring
inferno… heavy smoke. Heavy
fire. It was like a firestorm.”
Foreman ran to the back of the
building. “Then I spotted them. A
woman, a child and they’re
standing there on the fire
escape, 10 feet from the fire
itself. And they’re looking for
help…. All of a sudden, boom! It
just crashes. Everything is falling
and I’m thinking, ‘Just keep
shooting.’… Then a bell went off
in my head. I didn’t want to see
them hit.” Foreman turned away.
The 19-year-old woman died.
Her 3-year-old niece survived.

14. Discussion & Brainstorm
● Questions:
○ How did your opinion or reaction of the photograph change as the
context deepened?
○ How does evaluating an image compare or contrast with evaluating a
text?
○ What sort of context or information might you need in order to make
an argument with an image?
● Brainstorm: The CRAP Analysis
Currency
Reliability
Accuracy
Perspective
* Not just for IL

15. Beyond Images: Remix Culture
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JImcvtJzIK8

16. Ongoing & iterative instruction
● VL in day-to-day work
○ Consultations with students, faculty, and staff
○ @ the Reference Desk
○ Meetings with the Research Services Dept.
○ Meetings with the Instruction Team
● VL within Depts on campus
● "Visual Literacy in a Nutshell" - presentation and handout to
Librarians' Group @ Watzek
● Addressing the question: VL with IL
○ How do they work together?
○ How are they different?

17. Information Literacy & Visual Literacy
"The Visual Literacy Standards were developed in the context of the
Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education, and are
intended to complement the Information Literacy Standards...
Images often function as information, but they are also aesthetic and creative
objects that require additional levels of interpretation and analysis. Finding
visual materials in text-based environments requires specific types of research
skills. The use, sharing, and reproduction of visual materials also raise
particular ethical and legal considerations.
The Standards address these distinct characteristics of images and visual media
and challenge students to develop a combination of abilities related to
information literacy, visual communication, interpretation, and technology and
digital media use."
- ACRL Visual Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education, http:
//www.ala.org/acrl/standards/visualliteracy

18. Acknowledgments, Credits & Further Reading
Lewis & Clark College
Mark Dahl, Acting Director, Aubrey R. Watzek Library
Dan Kelley, Faculty Outreach Librarian
Kate Rubick, Instruction Services Librarian
Miranda Carney-Morris, IT Consultant and Planner-Extraordinaire of the FTI
Image for VL Exercise:
Boston Fire, photographed by Stanley J. Forman. Spot News, July 22, 1975, Boston, MA.© Stanley J. Forman reproduced
with permission in Capture The Moment: The Pulitzer Prize Photographs, Updated Edition, eds. Cyma Rubin and Eric
Newton, Newseum Exh. cat. (2003: W.W. Norton), pp. 94-95.
Chart on Information Literacy Proficiencies:
Creative Commons License Attribution-Non-Commerical:
http://lemonsky.files.wordpress.com/2008/11/ilproficienciesposter.pdf
YouTube Remixed Video
"Where Has the Rum Gone?"-Remix, by DaJuggling Fool: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JImcvtJzIK8
Further Reading:
ACRL Visual Literacy Competency Standards & Guidelines:
(History of development) http://acrlvislitstandards.wordpress.com/
(Actual Standards & Guidelines): http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/visualliteracy
Remix Culture:
Lawrence Lessig, Blog: http://www.lessig.org/blog/
Lawrence Lessig on TED Talks: http://www.ted.com/speakers/larry_lessig.html