Saturday, August 20, 2011

Digital Consumerism

Visually we are there. You name it; we have it from streaming videos on YouTube to television shows on Hulu. And of course, let’s not forget the treasure trove of pictures from Google, Creative Commons, and more. In other words, we have all the visuals we need to design, create, and use in teaching. Students can consume vast amounts of digital content from countless sources. If there were ever a case for teaching visually, it’s now. But even more important is to teach students to think about and interpret the quantity of digital material they come across daily.

Source: Visual-Literacy.org
To grasp the types of visual interpretations, one has only to look at the Periodic Table of Visualizations with its 100 different methods for looking at information. Like the chemical elements, this periodic table classifies the types of visualizations into eight groups, including data, strategy, metaphor, compound, concept, information, process, and structure visualizations. The table is color-coded according to these groups, and each box in the table includes a pop-up example of that particular method. The fact that there are 100 different types included in this table does not take into account the countless others that were excluded or the enormous number of other images they see. In addition, understanding visualizations is not just relegated to the sciences and geography anymore, but rather it has become a routine way to present information.

We’ve all witnessed the daily craze in using infographics to make information “simple” to digest and the countless data maps for just about anything. Information, images, infographics are all a dime a dozen. “So What?” As the deluge of digital media grows, so does the exposure to it. With that, the amount of digital consumption goes up disproportionately to the amount we can take in and process. If it were our diet, we would be obese. We need to adapt methods to teach students how to think about the things they see not as fleeting views. They need to know how to study digital content for meaning as a matter of necessity in order to weed out digital junk.

Educating our digital consumers in how to move past the sound bites, the flashy images, and the interactive movements on the computer screen takes on a larger significance in a technological world full of gadgets and gizmos. Just like food, we have plenty of treats to eat that don’t necessarily have nutritional value. The same goes for the treats we are tempted by in the digital world. They, too, add to our experience, but they do not necessarily broaden our knowledge base. Learning to question the value of what to consume will develop skills for selectivity. Digital junk is produced daily and without instruction in an educational environment can be consumed without regard to legitimacy. As educators, we need to teach the nuances of knowing what’s on one's plate and whether it is good for consumption. Teaching students how to deconstruct the marketing, design, and interconnections of information will enable our students make healthier choices about what they choose to consume.

6 comments:

  1. In this present world new technology has been introducing which makes the educator to learn new things.The information you shared here is unique and informative which is very rear to see nowadays.I am writer working at write my paper for the past 7 years.I would have missed the useful information if I didn't find your site. So keep on sharing hope to see more from you.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I am really enjoying reading your well written articles.
    It looks like you spend a lot of effort and time on your blog.Keep Doing. Myassignmenthelp

    ReplyDelete
  3. Excellent and nice post. It will beneficial for everyone. Thanks for sharing such a wonderful post. help in writing assignment

    ReplyDelete
  4. Contact the best, skilled experts to avail Online Assignment Help service at the best price.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thanks for sharing excellent informations. Your web-site is very cool. I’m impressed by the details that you have on this site. It reveals how nicely you understand this subject. Bookmarked this web page, will come back for more articles. You, my pal, ROCK! I found simply the information I already searched all over the place and simply couldn’t come across. What a great web-site.

    office.com/setup
    office.com/setup
    mcafee.com/activate
    mcafee.com/activate

    ReplyDelete
  6. You may also buy MCA Leads on Fiverr, Upwork, LinkedIn, and other marketplaces. Please speak with a person or a Leads Generation company before purchasing a service from them. And talk about what they can do and what you're searching for.

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...


Pin It