- Year 2023
- NSF Noyce Award # 1950290
- First Name Meena
- Last Name Balgopal
- Institution Colorado State University
- Role/Position PI
- Workshop Category Track 1: Scholarships and Stipends
- Workshop Disciplines Audience STEM Education (general)
- Target Audience Co-PIs, Noyce Master Teachers, Noyce Teaching Fellows, Other Faculty/Staff, Project PIs, Undergraduate and/or Graduate Noyce Scholars
- Topics Resources for Teachers, STEM Content Area and/or Convergent Description Skills Development
- Session Length 45 minutes minutes
- Additional Presenter(s)
Jessie Mader, jessie.mader@colostate.edu; Jessi Chollet, jess.chollet@colostate.edu
Goals
In this interactive workshop, participants will learn how to use a Visual Literacy Heuristic to identify 1) what they see (i.e., type of image); 2) how they know it (i.e., symbols used); 3) why it is important (i.e., how is the image informative); and 4) what you wonder (i.e., what questions arise).
Evidence
Our heuristic was adapted from the visual thinking strategy approach, which has been demonstrated to promote critical thinking skills and creativity (Moeller et al., 2013; Yenawine, 2013). We will invite participants to suggest ways they could use this heuristic and/or adapt across STEM disciplines.
Proposal
STEM professionals communicate with one another using visual images. These may include figures, diagrams, graphs, tables, maps, drawings, and photographs. These images may inform other STEM professionals how to set up an experiment, use an instrument, collect and analyze data, or how to interpret data. Other images may synthesize copious amounts of data into single figures, helping others see patterns quickly. In this interactive workshop, participants will learn how to use a Visual Literacy Heuristic to identify 1) what they see (i.e., type of image); 2) how they know it (i.e., symbols used); 3) why it is important (i.e., how is the image informative); and 4) what you wonder (i.e., what questions arise). Our heuristic was adapted from the visual thinking strategy approach, which has been demonstrated to promote critical thinking skills and creativity (Moeller et al., 2013; Yenawine, 2013). We will invite participants to suggest ways they could use this heuristic and/or adapt across STEM disciplines. Moeller, M., Cutler, K., Fiedler, D., & Weier, L. (2013). Visual thinking strategies= creative and critical thinking. Phi Delta Kappan, 95(3), 56-60. Yenawine, P. (2013). Visual thinking strategies: Using art to deepen learning across school disciplines. Harvard Education Press.
