Document Type
Article
Journal/Book Title/Conference
Visual Communication
Volume
15
Publisher
SAGE Publications
Publication Date
2-2016
Abstract
Framed in theories of social semiotics, this descriptive multiple case study examined the images used by six middle-school teachers during one school year as they each taught two different subject areas: earth science, language arts, mathematics, and/or social studies. Using Kress and Van Leeuwen’s visual grammar to analyze these images, this study identified discipline-specific patterns in how 1,132 images realized assumptions in regards to the ideational and interpersonal metafunctions of communication. A content analysis suggested discipline-specific differences in the presumed social distance between the content of the images and the students, as well as discipline-specific differences in assumptions about the subjectivity of knowledge. Instructional implications are suggested, such as encouraging students to critique the assumptions in images and selecting a wider array of image types in each discipline.
Recommended Citation
Wilson-Lopez, Amy and Landon-Hays, Melanie, "A Social Semiotic Analysis of Instructional Images across Academic Disciplines" (2016). Teacher Education and Leadership Faculty Publications. Paper 2250.
https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/teal_facpub/2250
Comments
Copyright © 2016 by SAGE Publications
Publishers version can be found here: http://vcj.sagepub.com/content/15/1/3.abstract