The most prominent literacy learning experience for me personally was when I was in year 11 many, many years ago now. I was in my Visual Art Class, my teacher was Miss Payton, and she was vibrant, so stylish, very dedicated and inspirational. I remember the lesson clearly, we all came into the classroom and knew it was a theory lesson. As we took out our books, Miss Payton called everyone to gather on one side of the classroom and look at the poster on the wall. There it was Van Gogh’s Starry Night. I was instantly drawn to the colour and flow of the work. This led to a discussion of the artist, who he was, when he painted the work, what he was interested in, the style that he painted. Then the discussion lead to the world, where he was located, what was happening at the time. The artwork, how it was painted, what it was about, what was the purpose and meaning. Audience, what did the people think of it at the time and what do they think of it now. I was totally engaged, the class was totally engaged, throughout the discussion Miss Payton drew a word web of words and links on the board, yes using chalk. We then headed back to our seats and began to copy down the mind maps into our books and began to create a similar painting using a factor of Van Gogh’s painting, the style, the subject, the colour to form our own work.
Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890), A Starry Night
Through this experience I am able to now see what the teacher was doing here, although an art class the literacy component carries through each subject. The Four Resources Model created by Freebody and Luke (1990) creates the outline of how we use literacy in a social setting.
The Functional Literacy, code breaker, recognising the terms and symbols that link, the visual print in this case, as the visual aid that has lead us to the verbal and written literacy. The teacher has used a word web to take the visual elements into written text.
The Personal Literacy, meaning maker, comprehending written, spoken and visual texts, through personal experience and prior knowledge. From the word web the words are said to create meaning decoding the symbols and engage students in the lingo of the art world and notice the change in social environment and the influence on the diversity of the text in comparison to other subjects. Incorporating the semiotic systems of symbols to represent the words we understand. Drawing on prior knowledge and process we have experienced to create deeper learning.
The Cultural Literacy, text user, understanding the purposes of different written, spoken and visual texts for different cultural and social functions. Using the words from the word web we are able to understand the processes and techniques and to incorporate these into our personal art work.
The Critical Literacy, text analyst, understanding how the text positions readers, viewers and listeners and how the information, ideas and language in texts influence reader perceptions. This enables us to critically analyse the work and also challenge our views to convey a particular idea or perception. This is what art is about, to look at the world and break it down, to create an understanding, to personally engage in the situation, to use it and learn from it and to question the outcomes.
Further information on Luke and Freebody's research can be found at:
From my research and from my memories of literacy I have come to the conclusion that literacy is encompassing and diverse. The highest value relies on the early stages of learning to open your mind to the world of literacy, more than I ever realised, as this becomes instrumental in forming the basis of self. It is what makes you who you are, the more open and exposed one is to the literacy’s in life the more diverse a person you will become. My passion for art was something that I have been drawn to from an early age, but it wasn’t until that defining moment that something took hold and led me on the path, although a winding one, to where I am today. I only hope I can have that influence on my students to embrace their passion.
