Reading Blog #1

The article “Re-Viewing Visual Literacy” by Maria Avgerinou explores the impact of current visual media landscape, which is often now referred to as “bain d” images era, on our everyday lives. In present times with advanced media, the internet, and advertising being very prominent, there has become a very pressing need to develop new skills for engaging with these topics. One skill highlighted in this article is visual literacy (VL), which is our ability to read, write, and also create visual images with the information we process in our everyday lives. 

Avgerinou touches on how we use visual literacy to navigate and understand visual content. Along with describing what visual literacy is, she also goes more in-depth as to what this process involves. For example, you cannot have visual literacy without also channeling visual discrimination, critical viewing and thinking, and visual reasoning. 

As media and the digital era evolve with time, Avgerinou emphasizes that there is a need for the education system to also evolve with the times. Going forward we must learn to incorporate skills to become more visually literate in order for generations to understand visual media. Since our world is so full of visual content and image-based, new skills will be needed in order to adapt to the changing times. Avgerinou concludes her article by advocating for a broader education system that caters to visual literacy and digital skills in order for people to navigate the coming 21st century. We learned how to read visually in class and I think using a creative thinking approach can allow our minds to grow and think in new ways.