Thriving in Academe

Beyond the Written Word

College instructors should make better use of visual media.
by Charles Boone, College of DuPage

Getting students to understand a concept takes more than a well-spoken phrase.

Since the 1950s, visual communication has become an increasingly significant cultural vehicle in our society. Much of what we "learn" today comes to us from television, the Internet, movies/videos, or posted advertisements.

Elementary and secondary teachers routinely use visual media in the classroom to convey and reinforce course content. But in higher education, such culturally diverse forms of communication are often considered "lightweight" or less serious modes of discourse.

In the college classroom, when students fail to focus on lengthy lectures or reading assignments, we often complain of their lack of discipline and dedication. Could it be instead that we are merely failing to do our jobs by not engaging them in ways that are meaningful and relevant to their life experiences?

Perhaps in our enthusiasm for reading, we are inadvertently undermining students' ability to communicate by other means, especially visually. Perhaps we are creating a generation of citizens who can be led by visual devices but are incapable of critically creating or assessing them.

But why are visual communication media important in higher education? Is this mode worthy of our time and attention, or are we just falling into the trap of being entertaining rather than engaging?

Meet Charles Boone
Charles Boone is an associate professor of art and current president of the Faculty Association at the College of DuPage in Glen Ellyn, Illinois. He teaches courses in computer art and occasionally printmaking and drawing.
Chuck has earned a B.F.A. and an M.F.A. in painting as well as an M.A. in art education, all from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He is also currently a candidate for an M.A. in christian thought at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois. His work as an artist and academic explores the relationship between evangelical Christian thought and the visual arts.

next "Thriving" article