Journal #4 - Digital Image Libraries

Perception and Learning

Whether we realize it or not, we are ALL visual learners. For example, reading the text on this blog requires visual perception skills. In order to understand what I am writing, you must first perceive the information visually before it can be processed and a meaning "interpreted". Though we may not be accustomed to thinking of reading as such, it is primarily a visual skill that requires discriminating between foreground and background, size, shape, and position/grouping in order to create meaning through the connection of mental representations of knowledge with the shape and form of symbols we call "characters" when grouped together form "words" that are organized into "sentences" all of which contain individual meaning when combined express ideas, thoughts, concepts, etc.

It's not surprising that since much of the learning that takes place in the classroom is focused on interaction with textual materials, heavy emphasis is placed on developing reading skills. However, learning content through text alone can require complex cognitive skills and increased cognitive load, the effort expended to create or establish connections and relationships between the visual and mental representations of knowledge. This is especially true for learners that might have no prior knowledge, and therefore no mental representations, for a given content area. Or for communicating complex concepts and procedures that might require "holding" several mental visual representations at the forefront of one's mind while trying to create or establish mental connections and relationships between written text and meaning.

Images, like text, convey meaning through visual perception. However, images have a distinct advantage over text. Images have the ability to convey a far greater amount of information in a much smaller space with far less cognitive load to process the information. Hence the truism, "a picture is worth a thousand words." As a result, images are powerful "shortcuts" for representing both simple and complex ideas, concepts, emotions, information, and procedures and have been used throughout history, well before the written word, as a communication medium.

In fact, in many ways our brains are hard-wired to process visual information with maximum efficiency. Consider the following regarding learner's predisposition to visual perception in processing information and the implications for student learning (University of Minnesota's Mind Mapping web page)

• Between 80 and 90 percent of information that we receive from our environment is visual. 
• Our brains can process 36,000 images every hour. 
• Our memory for visual images is extraordinary. In one study, subjects were shown up to 10,000 pictures. Later they were shown some of these images again, mixed in with pictures they hadn't seen. Subjects were able to identify previously seen pictures with over 90 percent accuracy. 

Visual Literacy

"Visual literacy is defined as the ability to understand and use images, including the ability to think, learn, and express oneself in terms of images"

Roberts Braden

Given that most of the information we process on a daily basis is received visually, it makes sense that visual images have a crucial role to play in student learning. Both in transmitting information and transferring meaning through understanding. Without question the new personal computer, networking, and World Wide Web technologies have revitalized and refocused the need for K-12 teachers and students to develop sound visual literacy skills.

Access to the Internet and World Wide Web has opened up a universe of information to both teachers and students, including a vast wealth of publicly available digital images that can be used to facilitate student learning. Perhaps the most significant development brought about by the new computer and Web technologies is the ease with which teachers and students can now take an active role in creating visual images to enhance their learning environment. This is due in large part to two factors 1) intuitive image editing and production software, especially newer Web 2.0/3.0 tools and 2) the growing existence of free digital image libraries on the Web which provide almost unlimited resources for visual content on every subject matter imaginable.

Give such ready access, teachers can incorporate digital images into a variety of instructional practices in the classroom.

• To enrich text based content and support problem based learning with images that illustrate, demonstrate, and explain

• Provide multiple mediums of information with use of text, visuals, and audio to engage dual modes of processing information for deeper learning

• To provide alternative or additional means of processing information for ELL students or students with learning disabilities that may struggle with large amounts of text

• For use in project based learning allowing students choice and the ability to express themselves creatively while demonstrating understanding of content matter
• To keep students focused and on track; used appropriately, digital images can be very stimulating and engaging

While such access to the vast image repositories on the Web can be an incredible boon to teachers and students alike, with great access comes great responsibility. Namely that of respecting copyright and attribution licenses for use of digital images. Indeed, an important aspect of visual literacy is learning how to determine when, where, and how digital images may used for educational purposes. Both teachers and students should be aware of the guidelines for educational fair use policy, different types of creative common licensing, what is meant by "attribution" and the "public domain" and most importantly how to properly check or research whether or not a digital image is "safe" to use.

Digital Image Libraries

Digital image libraries exist in many forms encompassing a wide variety of visuals including stock photography, clip art, illustrations, historical and news photographs, charts, maps, diagrams and more. Collections of images on the Web are organized and curated by private individuals, public institutions, non-profit organization, museums, and the U.S. government. Another fast growing source of digital images are user created image libraries, a by product of the "gift culture" of new social networking tools that encourages users to give as well as take.

A few examples of digital image libraries that might be of interest to teachers and students is listed below:

• Photos8 - Over 11,000 professional stock photography images free for use with link back attribution.

• Open Clip Art Library - Over 35,000 pieces of clip-art in the public domain.

• Yale University's Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library - Online collection of 90,000 digital images from rare books and manuscripts

• The National Art Gallery - All images are available for education use. Separate web site for younger school children to interact with real pieces of art and modify them to create their own "original" works of art.

• The New York Public Library Digital Image Gallery - 700,000 images digitized from the The New York Public Library's vast collections, including illuminated manuscripts, historical maps, vintage posters, rare prints, photographs and more.

• Great Images in NASA - Collection of over 1000 historical images mostly in public domain, but all free for use in education.

In addition there many Internet search engines that can help teachers and students conduct searches on the World Wide Web for images:

• Google Images - The most comprehensive image search tool on the Web.

• The Internet Archive - Thousands of public domain digital movies uploaded by Archive users which range from classic full-length films, to daily alternative news broadcasts, to cartoons and concerts.

• BestPhotos.US - Custom Google image search engine for public domain photos including images taken by employees of all departments of U.S. government.

• Spiffy.com - Search engine aggregator that searches a multitude of other public domain search engines. Claims to search over a billion public domain images.