Running head: VISUAL FLUENCY: REFLECTION
Visual Fluency: Reflection
Cristina Turbatu
OTL545 Technology and Innovation
Colorado State University Global Campus
Dr. Brenda Bagwell
January 22, 2016
VISUAL FLUENCY: REFLECTION
Visual Fluency: Reflection
In order to encourage the seventh-grade English language students that I tutor to work on
their visual and collaborative fluencies, I assigned them the task of creating an at-a-glance
resource of the writing process, authors purpose, or points of view using Gliffy
([Link]), a diagram and flowchart creation digital tool. I created a group of four tutees
and assigned the project for homework.
Challenges
One of the challenges was time constraints. Students only had the weekend at their
disposal to work on the assignment and collaborate on the flowchart they had chosen. They
related to me that the software was straightforward and easy to use, but it took them a significant
amount of time to organize among themselves and decide which student would work on which
part. They expressed to me that they were glad that Gliffy provided a collaborative or sharing
option, where one student could work on his/her part and then forward the work to the
subsequent student to continue the project.
Successes
The project was turned in promptly and all four students expressed to me that they highly
enjoyed completing the writing process diagram. In fact, they were so engaged with the act of
creating their own flowcharts and diagrams that they asked me if they can create another diagram
for this weeks topic. Two of the students related to me that the fact that they were creating their
own at-a-glance resource for the writing process helped them retain the information better in
terms of remembering the sequential writing stages. Another student wanted to print the
flowchart, laminate it and post it on the wall. The students comments about the benefits of
diagram creation to their own learning experience can be explained by Allan Paivio and James
VISUAL FLUENCY: REFLECTION
Clarks dual coding theory, which purports that the human brain has an area for images and
one for verbal and that significant connections are made in the brain when we use both areas
simultaneously; connections useful for learning, motivation, achievement, memory, and
comprehension (McDonald, 2012). The process of creating a diagram or flowchart includes both
components: images and verbal (text).
Solutions
To prevent future challenges in group organization and collaborative group work, I would
need to provide students ample time before project inception to plan their responsibilities and
sequence. In other words, group members need to detail the logistics in terms of completing a
digital project and forwarding the work to other group members: which member begins the
project, which member will obtain the project after that, which group member edits, revises, and
which group member publishes the work. To prevent indecision related to visual aesthetics,
group members also need to discuss beforehand how they would like their visual project to look
like, including form, aesthetics, shape, color, and any other details they can sort out in the very
beginning.
Conclusion
The visual fluency project assigned to the students proved to be a success. Students were
engaged in collaborating on the flowchart they created, including selecting various colors, lines,
and shapes that they thought would add value to their diagram and emphasize their topic.
Moreover, students expressed satisfaction in creating their own at-a-glance resources and even
requested more opportunities to create diagrams for future topics. As an educator, the aspect that
fascinated me the most about this project was that students were able to work on two fluencies
simultaneously: visual and collaborative.
VISUAL FLUENCY: REFLECTION
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References
McDonald, L. (Producer, Director, and Writer). (2012). Visual literacy: Enhancing the reading
landscape [Video file]. Retrieved from [Link]
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