This interdisciplinary exploration of visual literacy is a result of the discussions that arose at the 2011 Conference on Visual Literacy in Oxford. Consistent with the themes which surfaced at the conference, this collection of articles examines our ways of framing what we see.

Today’s teachers need up-to-the-minute information to help their students make sense of the multimodal texts they encounter daily in and out of school. Reading the Visual is an essential introduction that focuses on what teachers should know about multimodal literacy and how to teach it. This engaging book provides theoretical, curricular, and pedagogical frameworks for teaching a wide-range of visual and multimodal texts, including historical fiction, picture books, advertisements, websites, comics, graphic novels, news reports, and film. Each unit of study presented contains suggestions for selecting cornerstone texts and visual images and launching the unit, as well as lesson plans, text sets, and analysis guides. These units are designed to be readily adapted to fit the needs of a variety of settings and grade levels. Book Features: An accessible introduction to visual literacy and multimodality.Classroom strategies and demonstrations for analyzing and interpreting multimodal texts.Hands-on examples of units of study for ten types of multimodal texts.Resources for developing and adapting units, including suggested texts, analysis guides, and learning objectives. “Frank Serafini gets it. He knows that language and literacy were our original multimodal forms. He knows that today they are as crucial as they have ever been, but that they comport with a great many new relatives which are daily widening and transforming what we mean and how we mean it.” —From the Foreword by James Paul Gee, Mary Lou Fulton Presidential Professor of Literacy Studies, Arizona State University “Reading the Visual positions the analysis of visual images and multimodal ensembles as essential to language arts and literacy learning. Serafini’s book contributes important scholarship in understanding the theories behind this analysis and the significance of the visual in the many texts we encounter in and out of school settings.” —Peggy Albers, Georgia State University “Reading the Visual is based on wide scholarship; it brings that to a point of profound insight and of intense practicality. Those taking first steps into the area will find a path smoothed by a seductively simple style; those there already are offered constant insight and challenge. It is a book that will be valued by both kinds of reader.” —Gunther Kress, Professor of Semiotics and Education, Institute of Education, University of London Frank Serafini is an author, illustrator, photographer, educator, musician, and an associate professor of Literacy Education and Children’s Literature at Arizona State University. Visit the author’s website at www.frankserafini.com

In order for students to reap the benefits of graphic novels, teachers need to first incorporate them into their classrooms. Graphic novels are not only a viable option to improve student retention of literature, but also the cornerstone of several potential lesson plans. The multimodal nature of graphic novels allows teachers to shape their lessons in new directions. When the validity of graphic novels is no longer a question, students and teachers alike will discover the countless benefits of multimodal learning.

The untold story of the root cause of America's education crisis--and the seemingly endless cycle of multigenerational poverty. It was only after years within the education reform movement that Natalie Wexler stumbled across a hidden explanation for our country's frustrating lack of progress when it comes to providing every child with a quality education. The problem wasn't one of the usual scapegoats: lazy teachers, shoddy facilities, lack of accountability. It was something no one was talking about: the elementary school curriculum's intense focus on decontextualized reading comprehension "skills" at the expense of actual knowledge. In the tradition of Dale Russakoff's The Prize and Dana Goldstein's The Teacher Wars, Wexler brings together history, research, and compelling characters to pull back the curtain on this fundamental flaw in our education system--one that fellow reformers, journalists, and policymakers have long overlooked, and of which the general public, including many parents, remains unaware. But The Knowledge Gap isn't just a story of what schools have gotten so wrong--it also follows innovative educators who are in the process of shedding their deeply ingrained habits, and describes the rewards that have come along: students who are not only excited to learn but are also acquiring the knowledge and vocabulary that will enable them to succeed. If we truly want to fix our education system and unlock the potential of our neediest children, we have no choice but to pay attention.

What does it mean to be visually literate? Does it mean different things in the arts and the sciences? In the developed West or in developing nations? This groundbreaking collection explores what impact the new concept of "visual literacy" has on art history.

This book draws on a longitudinal study which highlights the beneficial impact of film in the primary curriculum. It provides detailed accounts of both the reading process as understood within the field of literacy education, and of film theory as it relates to issues such as narration, genre and audience. The book focuses on a small cohort of children to explore how progression in reading film develops throughout a child’s time in Key Stage 2; it also examines how the skills and understanding required to read film can support the reading of print, and vice versa, in an ‘asset model’ approach. Since children’s progression in reading film is found to be not necessarily age-related, but rather built on a period of experience and opportunity to read and/or create moving image media, Bulman clearly illustrates the importance of the inclusion of film in the primary curriculum. The book provides an accessible study to a large audience of primary teachers and practitioners, and will be a valuable resource for students and researchers in the fields of education, English and media studies.