Quan điểm của giáo viên và cách họ khai thác các hình ảnh trong sách giáo khoa vào việc giảng dạy tiếng anh

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES
*********************

NGUYỄN THỊ THƢƠNG

TEACHERS’ VIEWS AND EXPLOITATION OF TEXTBOOK IMAGES IN
ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING

Quan điểm của giáo viên và cách họ khai thác các hình ảnh trong sách giáo
khoa vào việc giảng dạy Tiếng Anh

M.A MAJOR PROGRAM THESIS

Major: English Language Teaching Methodology
Code: 8140231.01

Hanoi, 2018


VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES
*********************

NGUYỄN THỊ THƢƠNG

TEACHERS’ VIEWS AND EXPLOITATION OF TEXTBOOK IMAGES IN
ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING

Quan điểm của giáo viên và cách họ khai thác các hình ảnh trong sách giáo
khoa vào việc giảng dạy Tiếng Anh

M.A MAJOR PROGRAM THESIS

Major: English Language Teaching Methodology
Code: 8140231.01
Supervisor: Dr. Trần Thị Thanh Phúc

Hanoi, 2018
ơ


DECLARATION
I hereby certify that the thesis entitled “Teachers’ views and exploitation of
textbook images in English language teaching” is the result of my own research
for the Degree of Master of Arts at the University of Languages and International
Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, and that this thesis has not been
submitted for any other degrees.

Hanoi, 2018

Nguyễn Thị Thƣơng

i


ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to express the deepest appreciation to my supervisor, Dr. Trần Thị
Thanh Phúc for helping me complete this study. This paper would not have been

accomplished

without her

expert, constant and

valuable

guidance

and

encouragement. Her patience and helpful criticism helped me confidently express
my ideas into this paper.
I also wish to express my sincere thanks to all my lecturers at the Faculty of
Postgraduate Studies, University of Languages and International Studies for their
valuable lectures, which have helped me a great deal in gaining a lot of theoretical
background as well as practical knowledge.
My special thanks also go to my friends and colleagues at the Faculty of English
Language Teacher Education for their enthusiastic help and support with my
working schedule, which gave me precious time to deal with my thesis.
Finally, I would also like to express my deep gratitude and love to my family who
gave me time and encouragement to overcome all obstacles during the completion
of this study.

ii


ABSTRACT
This research aims at investigating teachers’ opinions and exploitation of textbook

images in English language teaching as well as their training experiences of
textbook image exploitation. This is a mixed method study that uses three main
instruments including survey questionnaire, interview and classroom observation to
collect data from 276 English language teachers who are currently teaching
English in different public schools in Vietnam. It was discovered that even
though teachers highly valued textbook images, they did not seem to fully realize
the instructive impacts of the resource, which may result from their lack of
training in visual literacy instruction. This explains why textbook images seemed
to be employed purely to teach vocabulary in the pre-teaching stage of the
lesson, and mostly ideational meaning was employed while interpersonal and
textual meanings were neglected.

iii


TABLE OF CONTENTS
DECLARATION ..................................................................................................................... i
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................... ii
ABSTRACT .......................................................................................................................... iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS ....................................................................................................... iv
PART A: INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................. 1
1.

Rationale .................................................................................................................................... 1

2.

Research aims ............................................................................................................................ 3

3.

Research objectives .................................................................................................................... 4

4.

Methodology .............................................................................................................................. 4

5.

Research significance ................................................................................................................. 4

6.

Organization ............................................................................................................................... 5

PART B: DEVELOPMENT ................................................................................................... 6
CHAPTER I: LITERATURE REVIEW................................................................................. 6
1.1.

The old literacy and the new literacy ..................................................................................... 6

1.2.

Multiliteracies or multimodal literacy and visual literacy ..................................................... 7

1.3.

Integrating visual literacy with language teaching and learning .......................................... 11

1.3.1.

Impact of visuals in teaching and learning ................................................................... 11

1.3.2.

Impact of visuals in English language teaching and learning ...................................... 13

1.3.3.

Integrating visual literacy into English language teaching .......................................... 15

1.4.

Textbook as a multiliteracy resource in English language teaching .................................... 16

1.5.

Negligence regarding using visuals in English language classroom.................................... 17

1.6.

Related studies in Asia and in Vietnam ............................................................................... 18

1.7.

Summary .............................................................................................................................. 20

CHAPTER II: METHODOLOGY ....................................................................................... 21
2.1.

Research design.................................................................................................................... 21

2.2.

Setting and participants ........................................................................................................ 21

2.3.

Instruments ........................................................................................................................... 23

2.3.1.

Questionnaire ............................................................................................................... 23

2.3.2.

Interview ...................................................................................................................... 25

2.3.3.

Classroom observation ................................................................................................. 28

2.4.

Procedure ............................................................................................................................. 30

2.5.

Data analysis ........................................................................................................................ 32

2.6.

Summary .............................................................................................................................. 33
iv


CHAPTER III: FINDINGS .................................................................................................. 34
3.1.

Teachers’ views on textbook images in English language teaching .................................... 34

3.1.1.

The importance of using textbook images in English language teaching .................... 34

3.1.2.

The impact of textbook images in English language teaching and learning ................ 36

3.1.3.

The challenges of using textbook images in teaching .................................................. 39

3.2.

Teachers’ exploitation of textbook images in English language teaching ........................... 40

3.2.1.

The frequency of using textbook images in English language teaching ...................... 40

3.2.2.

The use of textbook images in teaching different skills and sub-skills ........................ 44

3.2.3.

The use of textbook images in different lesson stages ................................................. 45

3.2.4.

The exploitation of textbook image types .................................................................... 47

3.2.5.

The exploitation of textbook image meanings ............................................................. 48

3.2.5.1.

The exploitation of ideational meaning................................................................ 49

3.2.5.2.

The exploitation of interpersonal meaning........................................................... 56

3.2.5.3.

The exploitation of textual meaning .................................................................... 62

3.2.5.4.

Summary of teachers’ exploitation of textbook image meanings ........................ 63

3.2.6.
The impact of teachers’ exploitation of textbook images in English language teaching
from students’ views .................................................................................................................... 64
3.3.

Teachers’ training experiences and their opinion ................................................................ 65

3.3.1.

Teachers’ training experiences ..................................................................................... 65

3.3.2.

Teachers’ opinion on textbook image exploitation training channels .......................... 67

CHAPTER IV: DISCUSSION ...................................................................................................... 69
4.1.

Teachers’ views on textbook images in English language teaching .................................... 69

4.2.

Teachers’ use of textbook images in English language teaching ......................................... 71

4.3.

Teachers’ training experiences and their views on training channels .................................. 74

PART C: CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................. 76
REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................... 79
APPENDICES ................................................................................................................................... I
APPENDIX A: QUESTIONNAIRE ................................................................................................... I
APPENDIX B: INTERVIEW SCRIPT SAMPLE ........................................................................... VII
APPENDIX C: CLASSROOM OBSERVATION SCRIPT SAMPLE ........................................... XV
APPENDIX D: MINI-SURVEY QUESTION AND STUDENT’S ANSWER SAMPLE ............. XVI
APPENDIX E: MATERIALS USED BY TEACHERS IN EXTRACTS 1-12 ............................. XVII

v


List of abbreviations
ELT

English Language Teaching

ESL

English as a Second Language

MOET

Ministry of Education and Training

S

Student

SD

Standard Deviation

T

Teacher

ULIS, VNU

University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam
National University

vi


List of figures and tables
Figure 1. 1. Integration of visual literacy components in English language teaching (Suryanto,
2014, p. 40) ...................................................................................................................................... 16
Figure 3. 1. English language teachers’ view on textbook images .................................................. 34
Figure 3. 2. English language teacher’s frequency of using textbook images ................................. 41
Figure 3. 3. Material used in Extract 1 (Hoang, 2016, p. 41)........................................................... 50
Figure 3. 4. Material used in Extract 2, 3, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12 (Hoang, 2016, p. 47) ....................... 51
Figure 3. 5. Material used in Extract 4 and 7 (Hoang, 2016, p. 51) ................................................. 53
Figure 3. 6. Material used in Extract 5 (Hoang, 2016, p. 43)........................................................... 55
Figure 3. 7. Material used in Extract 6 (Hoang, 2016, p. 48)........................................................... 57

Table 1. 1. Kress and van Leeuven's (1996) image meaning model .................................................. 9
Table 1. 2. Three dimensions of viewing - Questions to help learners analyze images (Goldstein,
2016, p. 10) ...................................................................................................................................... 10

Table 2. 1. Participants’ biodata....................................................................................................... 22
Table 2. 2. Interviewee selection criteria ......................................................................................... 27
Table 3. 1. Result of one-way ANOVA analysis of “Importance” variable by “School” variable .. 35
Table 3. 2. Difference in teachers' view by teaching level of education .......................................... 35
Table 3. 3. Impacts of textbook images in teaching and learning .................................................... 36
Table 3. 4. Impacts of textbook images in English language teaching and learning ....................... 38
Table 3. 5. Challenges of using textbook images in teaching .......................................................... 39
Table 3. 6. Result of one-way ANOVA analysis of “Frequency” variable by “School” variable ... 41
Table 3. 7. Result of one-way ANOVA analysis of “Frequency” variable by “Degree” variable ... 42
Table 3. 8. Difference in teachers' use of textbook images by teaching level of education ............. 42
Table 3. 9. Difference in teachers' use of textbook images by education background .................... 43
Table 3. 10. Using textbook images in teaching skills and sub-skills.............................................. 44
Table 3. 11. Using textbook images in different lesson stages ........................................................ 46
Table 3. 12. Exploitation of textbook image types .......................................................................... 47
Table 3. 13. Exploitation of textbook image meanings.................................................................... 48
Table 3. 14. Experiences of training to exploit textbook images channels ...................................... 65
Table 3. 15. Usefulness of training to exploit textbook images channels ........................................ 67

vii


PART A: INTRODUCTION
1. Rationale
Communication has probably always been multimodal, i.e. different resources
such as language, images or music have their capacity to convey meaning, and
these resources are, in fact, often combined in various contexts to generate a
message. However, it was not until the late twentieth century when the
exponential rise in technology enabled many novel forms or modes of
presentation that the term multimodality was treated properly. The New London
Group (1996) broadly categorized different modes of communication into five

semiotic or meaning-making systems which encompass written-linguistic,
visual, audio, gestural and spatial patterns of meaning. They also proposed a
new approach to literacy pedagogy called multiliteracies or multimodal literacy
which encourages the teaching of all the meaning-making systems. Since then,
literacy was no longer simply the ability to read and write but rather, as defined
in the Australian Curriculum (2014), the two overarching processes of
comprehending texts through listening, reading and viewing, and composing
texts through speaking, writing and creating. In this sense, texts are considered
as a medium of communication, and they can be spoken, written, visual or
multimodal. In the meantime, there exists four knowledge areas that can be
applied to both receptive and expressive processes namely text knowledge,
grammar knowledge, word knowledge and visual knowledge.
According to the Australian Curriculum (2014), visual knowledge, which
involves learners understanding how visual information such as images (either
still or moving), tables, maps, and graphs contributes to the meaning of a text,
has become an integral part of the knowledge areas that students are required to
acquire in order to be literate in the twenty first century. This is becoming even
more and more important as mankind has been living in an increasingly visual
world.
1


The last two decades have witnessed the shift from the old literacy to the new
one in teaching and learning many subjects and areas. In English language
teaching, this change can be easily seen in English language teachers’ practices
and teaching materials as well. Instead of relying upon solely a print-based
textbook, they now have a wide range of options such as photos, drawings,
audios and videos to facilitate students’ learning. Even the traditional textbook
itself with words as the predominant meaning-making mode has these days
evolved into a new multimodal textbook with different modes including images,

words, audios, videos, hyperlinks and interactive CD-ROMs, which are all well
integrated with each other. The benefits of multimodal textbooks have been
widely discussed among different researchers. For instance, Ajayi (2012) stated
that multimodal textbooks usually “foster greater student participation, freedom
to communicate, collaboration and negotiation of meanings” (p. 17). They also
offer English learners the opportunity to be exposed to various meaning-making
modes, enabling them to acquire multiliteracies. Kress (2000) even claimed that
“it is now impossible to make sense of texts, even of their linguistic parts alone,
without having a clear idea of what these other features might be contributing to
meaning of a text” (p. 337).
In Vietnam, the current English textbook seems to be at the crossroads between
the new multimodal textbook and the old traditional one. On the one hand, it is
full of images and audios combined with linguistic texts, which suggests that it
can be regarded as a multimodal textbook as it utilizes several modes of
communication. On the other hand, such resources as videos and CD-ROMs are
not designed to be part of the textbook. This is reflected in reality where many
schools especially those in mountainous and remote areas, do not have sufficient
facilities to enable the use of videos and CD-ROMs, or even audios, in English
language classrooms. In those cases, the textbook is compulsory while the
audios and other resources can be regarded as optional. Therefore, the textbook
with its linguistic texts and images is possibly still considered the main source of
2


English language learning instruction in most of the schools in Vietnam.
However, according to Hobbs and Frost (2003), textbook images are often
completely neglected or superficially exploited in the classroom. This
negligence, as explained by those researchers, is primarily due to teachers’
loyalty to the old literacy where linguistic mode seemed predominant.
Inspired by a presentation of Professor Len Unsworth from an Australian

university in a conference about multiliteracies held at ULIS, VNU Hanoi in
2014, as an English lecturer at Faculty of English Language Teacher Education
for five years, the author regularly utilizes coursebook images as well as other
visual resources in her teaching and receives positive feedback from her
students. Some even claimed that they “have never learnt that there exist so
many messages underlying each image”. Nevertheless, from her experience as a
teacher trainer who is responsible for training English teachers in the National
Foreign Language 2020 Project, she realized that images were not sufficiently
exploited by many high school teachers. Some considered the huge resource of
textbook images as purely a decoration rather than having any potentials to
exploit for language learning.
Therefore, it can be seen that there is a gap between the potential use of textbook
images especially in teaching students multiliteracies and teachers’ teaching
practices. Moreover, in Vietnam, research on this topic appears to be quite
limited. That is the reason why the author decided to do this research titled
“Teachers’ views and exploitation of textbook images in English language
teaching”.
2. Research aims
This research was carried out to investigate teachers’ opinion and practices of
using textbook images to teach English language as well as to examine their
training experiences of textbook image exploitation.

3


3. Research objectives
To achieve the research aims, three specific research questions as follows were
addressed:
1. What are teachers’ views on the use of textbook images in English
language teaching?

2. How are textbook images used in English language lessons?
3. How were teachers trained to exploit textbook images in English
language teaching and how do they rate different channels of training?
4. Methodology
This is both a quantitative and qualitative research. To find out the answer to
these above questions, first, a questionnaire with fifty-two items was developed
from related studies in the literature. Data were subsequently collected from 276
English language teachers from different primary, secondary and high schools in
Vietnam. Fifteen of these participants were then selected and invited for further
interview to figure out the reasons underlying their choices. Class observation
was implemented to obtain data about two teachers’ practices of using textbook
images in their English language teaching. In addition to that, a mini-survey
with one open-ended question was conducted among 86 grade-10 students from
the two observed classes in order to figure out the impacts of these teachers’
exploitation of textbook images on their students.
5. Research significance
In terms of theory, this research will confirm the necessity of integrating visual
literacy in English language teaching. In particular, it proves that Kress and van
Leeuven’s (1996) image meaning model can be utilized in “reading” visual
images. Regarding practicality, the findings of this research will contribute to
the limited current literature on the utilization of visual material in English
language teaching, particularly in the context of Vietnamese schools. It can
4


serve as a useful source of reference for other researchers who are interested in
the topic. More to the point, they provide a valuable insight into teachers’
opinion and practices of using textbook images as an available and potential
material source in English language teaching. The research may offer teachers
some practical suggestions on exploiting textbook images in their teaching.

Finally, teachers’ opinion on the usefulness of different training strategies is
possibly another suggestion for educators as well as administration staff.
6. Organization
The main content of this paper is comprised of four chapters. Chapter I reviews
the theoretical background and summarizes the related studies, which explains
the research gap. Chapter II presents in detail the methodology that the author
employed to collect data for the research. In chapter III, the data are analyzed in
depth using both qualitative and quantitative tools. Chapter IV reports the
author’s findings and discussion in relation with related studies in the field.

5


PART B: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER I: LITERATURE REVIEW
In this chapter, the author will briefly review the theoretical background and
summarizes the related studies to identify the research gap.
1.1.

The old literacy and the new literacy

The term literacy or being literate was traditionally defined in various ways, with
the focus on linguistic ability. In 1951, UNESCO described a literate person as
someone who can read and write, as well as be able to write about their daily life.
National Institute for Literacy (1992) added oral forms of literacy when stating that
the term, apart from referring to the ability to read and write, involves critical and
effective use of oral and written language for different purposes. Another definition
which was provided by Lawton and Gordon (1996, p. 108) mentioned “the level of
skill in reading and writing that any individual needs in order to cope with adult
life”.

However, definitions of literacy have evolved over the years, as commented by
Bitzer (2014, p. 41), from “an exclusive focus on reading and writing” to “a more
inclusive and expansive perspective”. Dubin and Kuhlman (1992) argued that
literacy could be interpreted as having knowledge, skills and competence. They
then provided examples of different expressions which are common these days such
as “computer literacy”, “health literacy” and “civic literacy” to support their
argument. UNESCO (2005) added other instances such as “information literacy”,
“visual literacy”, “media literacy” and “scientific literacy”. In this sense, literacy is
no longer simply the ability to read and write, but rather the competences needed to
interact in different knowledge areas and situations.
Therefore, it can be concluded that a literate person these days will need more than
solely written-linguistic competence. This is increasingly important especially in the
information age of the twenty-first century when written language is no longer the
6


predominant means of communication (Evans, 2015; Goldstein, 2016; Kress, 2000;
Kress, 2003; Stephens, 1998). As a complement to it, for instance, visual images
can convey different messages, making them another form of communication.
1.2.

Multiliteracies or multimodal literacy and visual literacy

It is important to note that that change does not mean the death of written language.
As stated by Kress (2003), “Writing is too useful and valuable a mode of
representation and communication – never mind the enormous weight of cultural
investment in this technology” (p. 10). Instead, a new approach to literacy in which
language-based theory and semiotics (the study of signs and symbols and how they
are used) and other visual theories are combined could be developed (Cope &
Kalantzis, 2000; Jewitt, 2008; Kalantzis & Cope, 2005; Kress, 2003, Unsworth,

2001).
In response to this, the New London Group (1996) proposed multiliteracies or
multimodal literacy which centered on the understanding of multiple discourses or
multiple forms of representation. Those forms were broadly categorized into five
semiotic or meaning-making systems which encompass written-linguistic, visual,
audio, gestural and spatial patterns of meaning. Written-linguistic meaning concerns
both spoken and written language through the use of vocabulary, generic structure
and grammar. Visual meaning includes both still and moving images, i.e., videos,
through the use of color, saliency, page layouts, viewpoint and such elements.
Audio meaning deals with music, sound effects, ambient noise and silence. Gestural
meaning concerns movement of body, hands and eyes, facial expression, demeanors
and body language. Spatial meaning is about environmental and architectural
spaces. Multimodal refers to the combination of two or more meanings. In
classroom, the teaching of all these five systems or modes of communication was
highly recommended, and students would learn to analyze and interpret as well as
create multimodal texts.

7


Central to multiliteracies is visual literacy (Ajayi, 2012; Donaghy & Xerri, 2017;
Goldstein, 2016). According to Baker (2015), visual literacy is the competency to
identify the meaning of the visuals as well as create images to convey messages
either implicitly or explicitly. In other words, for a person to be regarded as visually
literate, he must be able to understand what images are, as well as to create or use
them for certain purposes (Suryanto, 2014).
According to Burch (2005), understanding an image probably involves in both
understanding the image type and image meaning. Suryanto (2014) added that once
English teachers have mastered the knowledge of image type and image meaning,
they can be considered as visually literate teachers and are able to select or create

the suitable images and use them to teach English language in an effective way.
In terms of classification, there has been much debate on different systems.
(Alesandrini; 1984; Evans, Watson & Willows, 1987; Hewings, 1991; Hill, 2003;
Levin, 1981; Romney & Bell, 2012). While images can be classified into
photographs or drawings, still or moving, color or black and white ones, it can be
more useful to categorize them based on their function as an instructional resource
(Suryanto, 2014). One of the simplest but most effective systems which have been
widely accepted by many researchers is Alesandrini’s (1984). He put images into
three types namely representational, analogical and arbitrary. Representational
images share physical resemblances with the content they are supposed to
demonstrate. For example, a passage of text describing airplane as a modern means
of transport can be accompanied by a picture of an airplane. In the meantime,
analogical images show some comparable features in certain respects with the
represented content. This type of image is usually used to describe novel objects or
concepts with an aim to explain them in a more comprehensible way, so it is crucial
that learners understand the analogy. For instance, the passage above would be
followed by a picture of a bird instead of an airplane because a bird can fly in the
sky, like an airplane can. Arbitrary images represent “highly schematized visuals

8


related logically to the things they represent” (Alesandrini, 1984, p. 63); they offer
visual clues, but do not share any resemblances to the concepts being explained.
Charts, graphs and mind-maps are some examples of this type.
Regarding meaning of images, Halliday (1994) proposed Systemic Functional
Linguistics theory, explaining that three types of meaning or language metafunctions termed ideational, interpersonal and textual simultaneously exist in verbal
language. Ideational meaning expresses what happens and participants, and
circumstances surrounding events. Interpersonal meaning concerns ways of
instituting relationships with others. Textual meaning organizes “the language into

coherent and meaningful spoken and written texts” (Droga & Humphrey, 2002, p.
11). These three meanings are all integrated in the structure of a clause and
construct its meaning. Kress and van Leeuven (1996) argued that these meanings do
occur in visual images. Table 1.1 briefly describes their image meaning model.
Image meanings
Description
Ideational
Informs what happened, who the participants are, what their
meaning
roles are and in what kind of circumstances the event take
place
Interpersonal
Constructs interconnection between the viewer and the image
meaning
Textual meaning Concerns the distribution of information value among the
elements of the image or between the image and the
accompanying text
Table 1. 1. Kress and van Leeuven's (1996) image meaning model

Many researchers such as Callow (2005), Serafini (2014) and Unsworth (2001)
continued developing this theory in an attempt to “read” images. For example,
Callow (2005) used a similar three-dimensional model to analyze visual images but
termed these three meanings critical, affective and compositional dimension
respectively. As further explained by Goldstein (2016), critical dimension
“foregrounds sociocultural considerations and highlights the image’s literal
meaning”, affective dimension “focuses on the individual’s sensual and immediate

9

response”, whereas compositional one “includes the identification of semiotic,
structural and contextual elements” (p. 9). Based on the models described above,
Goldstein (2016) established a list of questions which could be used as a guideline
to deploy any image.
AFFECTIVE/
COMPOSITIONAL/
PERCEPTUAL
STRUCTURAL
How does the image What elements can you
make you feel?
see in the foreground/
background, etc.?
Why does it make you What text accompanies
feel this way?
the image, if any (a
caption, a title, etc.)?
What does it add to the
image?
What other images How is the image framed
come to your mind or composed?
when you see it?
What
personal What do you think lies
relevance does it have beyond the frame?
for you, if any?
What does the image From what angle or point
remind you of?
of view has the image
been taken?

Do you identify with or
relate to the image in
any way? If so, how?
Do you think the image
is positive or negative?
Or
do
you
feel
indifferent towards it?
Why?

CRITICAL/
IDEOLOGICAL
What message does the
image transmit?
Who created it?
For what purpose and in
what context?

In what forms of media
will the image be seen?
Who is the intended
audience for the image?

In what context did you
view the image? The
original context or another
one?
What

is
the
difference?
Which parts of the image In how many different
are centrally focused?
ways could the image be
interpreted?
What has been altered, Are any of the images
omitted from or included stereotypical, idealized,
in the image?
non-representative
or
anachronistic?

Table 1. 2. Three dimensions of viewing - Questions to help learners analyze images
(Goldstein, 2016, p. 10)

10


1.3. Integrating visual literacy with language teaching and learning
1.3.1. Impact of visuals in teaching and learning
As a matter of fact, visuals have long been used as an effective tool for teaching and
learning. This effectiveness can be explained by two main reasons: the impact of
visuals on knowledge acquisition and the storage of that knowledge. Laird (1985)
concluded that although learning takes place through all senses, 75% of one's
knowledge is learned through vision. Medina (2008) described if a person only
reads a text, then after 72 hours, he remembers 10% of the information, while the
figure is increased to 65% if he reads the text with illustrating images. Similarly,
cognitive research has shown that human brains process images faster than word

processing, and compared to text, images are also more likely to be stored in longterm memory (Levie & Lentz, 1982). Beck, McKeown and Kucan (2002) argued
that images are used to support cognitive processes, which helps learners quickly
associate unknown words with concepts.
A huge body of research have confirmed the importance of images in teaching and
learning in different ways, which can be broadly categorized into two groups:
decorative and instructive impacts.
In the first aspect, images are designed for many tasks such as enjoyment, gaining
attention or motivating learners (Fang, 1996; Hills, 1994; Katherine, 2009;
Kasmaienezhadfard, Pourrajab & Rabbani, 2015; Natoli, 2011; Shabiralyani et al.;
2015). For example, Fang (1996) studied seventeen picture storybooks for children
and discovered that young learners are more excited when teachers read the text
while encouraging them to identify the characters, animals and objects in the
pictures. Similarly, Shabiralyani et al. (2015) collected data from 200 participants
who were either teaching staff or students in a district of Pakistan and claimed that
visuals contributed to motivate both teachers and students in different education
levels, from schools to colleges and universities. Together with audios, visual
materials play a crucial role in encouraging participation among students as well as

11


stimulating their interest (Brinton, 2000; Hills, 1994; Katherine, 2009; Kemp &
Dayton, 1985; Natoli, 2011).
More to the point, images can also be utilized because of more instructive impacts
(Diamond, 2008; Fang, 1996; Kasmaienezhadfard, Pourrajab & Rabbani, 2015;
Mannan, 2005). In a study on the influence of text-picture relationships on reader
recall and inference making, Diamond (2008) indicated that images and pictures in
textbooks are preferable to words because these visual elements make students
understand and learn better and more easily. They also often connect pictures with
their own life experiences, thus create meaning according to their existing schemas.

Therefore, visual aids can be regarded as a helpful tool in the classroom. As stated
by Mannan (2005), they “help the teacher to clarify, establish, correlate and
coordinate accurate concepts, interpretations and appreciations” and “enable him to
make learning more concrete, effective and meaningful” (p. 108). This statement is
also approved by a number of researchers such as Bamford (2003), Canning-Wilson
(2000), Watkins, Miller and Brobaker (2004). They pointed out that visual images
serve a crucial function in clarifying the message and lesson concepts. Additionally,
Kasmaienezhadfard, Pourrajab and Rabbani (2015) considered pictures as a
valuable device to develop pupil's creativity. Their research shows that pictures also
provide a time frame and give students a chance to make decision and utilize their
imagination to guess and elaborate what will happen. This encourages students to
create their own stories based on their imagination and creativity. Fang (1996)
added that illustrations in the books can create awareness in children's aesthetic
sense to appreciate of art and beauty.
To sum up, visual images seem crucial in teaching and learning: they not only play
an important part in fostering students’ knowledge acquisition, storage and recall
but also serve a significant function in boosting students’ creativity and motivation.

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1.3.2. Impact of visuals in English language teaching and learning
Like visuals used in teaching and learning other subjects, those implemented in
teaching and learning English are considered as a necessary aiding factor.
Most of the language teachers and researchers seem to agree that the use of visuals
can enhance language teaching in several ways (Baker, 2015; Birdsell, 2017;
Brinton, 2000; Canning-Wilson, 1998; Krčelić & Skledar Matijević; 2015). Baker
(2015), in her article about integrating visual literacy in language learning with
photographs, summarized the roles of images as an effective resource for language
classroom. To be more specific, visual images can trigger meaningful oral

interaction as they allow subjective interpretation among students. Birdsell (2017)
specifically focused on visual metaphors in ELT textbooks and claimed that using
those in a language-learning context provides students with learning opportunities
to discuss various social issues. This subjectivity together with students’ discussion
also explains the reason why visual literacy activities may help students to develop
their creative and critical thinking skills (Baker, 2015; Birdsell, 2017). Baker (2015)
argued that the interpretation of images required higher levels of thinking skills on
Bloom’s (1956) taxonomy, such as evaluating, synthesizing and analyzing. Another
benefit of using images in language learning is that they provide learners with a
means to interact with the real world, which is interestingly reflected from global
perspectives because the same phenomenon can be photographed by different
photographers with different frames and from different angles. Moreover, as they
help teachers to bring the real world into the classroom, they make learning more
meaningful and more exciting (Brinton, 2000).

These advantages suggest that

visuals can help make a task or situation more authentic (Canning-Wilson, 1998).
More to the point, images can be considered as a potential for instructional
scaffolding that facilitates students to perform more challenging tasks. Baker (2015)
gave a simple example to elaborate her idea: teachers might refer to visuals when
presenting new topics or vocabulary so that students quickly grasp the new

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concepts. As explained by Krčelić and Skledar Matijević (2015), when visual tools
are used as warmers, they activate students to start thinking about the topics that
will be introduced later or initiate classroom discussion and debate, which can
sometimes be difficult to achieve especially if students are not willing to talk.

Finally, visual literacy activities offer learners an opportunity to link language to
content instead of mechanically and arbitrarily memorizing vocabulary or grammar
(Baker, 2015).
Although many researchers seem to agree that visuals effectively support language
learning in different ways and can be utilized in teaching different language skills,
some pointed out that visuals can, in the meantime, hinder teaching and learning
process. Petrie (2003), studying visuals in e-text reading, stated that graphics,
symbols, images and such can distract students from understanding the linguistic
message. Likewise, students who are fiercely concentrating on written text may find
visuals slightly distracting (Jin & Boling, 2010; Mayer, 2003). Besides, images can
be highly ambiguous. Hewings (1991) concluded that although images were
assumed to be perceived in the same way by many people when they were designed
or created, their interpretation were totally unpredictable, i.e., different viewers can
interpret them in different ways. This ambiguity and unpredictability can lead to the
fact that analyzing images can sometimes be time-consuming. In another study on
challenges of using audio-visual aids as warm-up activity in teaching English, Sahin
and Secer (2016) claimed that time allocation is one of the distinct disadvantages in
utilizing these types of material as their interpretation usually takes much time of
the lesson. Because of this time issue, some teachers may decide not to exploit the
resource to the full or even ignore it despite its benefits when teaching English
language. For example, Jumba (2012) mentioned the lack of time as a major reason
why English teachers rarely taught composition using pictures, leading to lower
performance in composition writing among students.

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1.3.3. Integrating visual literacy into English language teaching
The thrive of visual images in life together with their crucial role in teaching and
learning English has led to the need to integrate visual literacy into English

language teaching, i.e., teaching English by combining words and visuals instead of
teaching purely with either words or visuals (Goldstein, 2016; Suryanto, 2014). This
integration has been openly discussed among many researchers, many of whom
have agreed that teaching English with the combination of written-linguistic and
visual resources demonstrates better outcome rather than teaching without it (Jin &
Boling, 2010; Mayer, 2003). Suryanto (2014) argued that visual literacy
components can be well integrated into teaching different English skills and subskills and in any stage of the lesson.
Teaching English covers many aspects that have broadly divided into four skills
including listening, speaking, reading and writing (Brown, 2007; Harmer, 2007;
Nunan, 1999; Snow, 2007). Researchers like Brown (2007), Harmer (2007), Nunan
(1999) and Snow (2007) added vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation and culture as
four other important aspects. In fact, visual tools can be used for teaching a wide
range of activities from receptive skills to productive skills, as well as enhancing
students’ vocabulary and grammar skills and teaching cultural aspects (Dema &
Moeller, 2012; Francey & Cain, 2015; Krčelić & Skledar Matijević, 2015;
Weninger & Kiss, 2013; Woolly, 2010). Also, in their studies, Baker (2015), and
Krčelić and Skledar Matijević (2015) suggested some practical applications of
visual images in English language classrooms.
Basic process of English language teaching and learning is comprised of at least
three stages namely pre-teaching, while teaching and post teaching. Snow (2007)
mentioned six steps in this process called preview, warm up, main activities,
optional activities, reserve or spare-tire activity and closing. Stafford (2011) argued
that visual literacy components in whatever form can be integrated in one or more

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steps of the teaching process. Suryanto (2014) visualized this integration in the
diagram as follows.

Figure 1. 1. Integration of visual literacy components in English language teaching
(Suryanto, 2014, p. 40)

Besides, there exists several principles that teachers are advised to be aware of
when integrating visual images in teaching English. Meredith (1947) mentioned
four principles as follows. Firstly, teachers must make adaptation to the available
resources. Secondly, visual images selected must be precisely related to a particular
task in the learning process. Thirdly, teachers need to maintain a balance between
different elements in the learning process. Finally, teachers should develop
student’s self-reliance to anticipate their use of the language in real contexts.
1.4.

Textbook as a multiliteracy resource in English language teaching

Textbook can be considered as an integral part of any English language classroom.
Richards (2015) claimed that “much of the language teaching that occurs
throughout the world today could not take place without the extensive use of
commercial textbooks” (p.1). Textbook guides teachers, especially novice ones,
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