News Releases 2010
LETU Team Heads to Kenya for Visual Literacy Study
Dr. Annie Olson, left, works with young Kenyan boy through translator as a warrior stands over to watch.
Sun, Jun 6 2010
Two LeTourneau University students
and their professor are traveling to the other side of the globe from June 6 to 30 to study visual
literacy, how people create meaning from images, photos, drawings or diagrams.
Seniors Kaitlin DeGraffenried and
Jess Shook will work with English professor Dr. Annie Olson at a research site in Korr, Kenya, a
remote region in the northern desert where nomadic camel herders live now much as they did
centuries ago. Korr is ideal for the research because it is probably as nearly unaffected by visual
media or materials as can be found in the 21st century. The LETU team will conduct assessments with
children whose schools lack even the most basic visual elements (like crayons, paints and
construction paper) for creating visual drawings.
“Theoretical literature links visual
literacy to problem solving,” Olson said. “We are researching those links and how specific
competencies can be addressed.”
The
Longview News Journal
is chronicling their journey with blog posts and photos.
