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We are sure you have noticed these new striking visuals on page 3. Perhaps you’re wondering why. Newspapers are about words—why all the brightly coloured images? Well, newspapers are about words, but they are more about conveying information. And don’t give short shrift to images—humans have been telling stories and informing ourselves and each other about all manner of information since Paleolithic times. Think of painted images of animals and hunters on cave walls, such as those in Lascaux, in France. That was about 30,000 years ago. By about 3000 BCE, the Egyptians were using sophisticated hieroglyphics, graphic symbols and icons to form a kind of metalanguage. Renaissance genius Leonardo da Vinci also used what we know today as infographics—in 1510 he composed a comprehensive guide to the human anatomy that blended text and illustration. In 1786, Scottish engineer William Playfair wrote a book titled The Commercial and Political Atlas and Statistical Breviary, which was the first to explain numeric data through the use of bar and linear graphs and pie charts.
Lady of the Lamp and Lady Di
About 70 years later, in the mid-1800s, none other than Florence Nightingale showed how efficiently graphics can convey information when she combined bar and pie charts to show the number of casualties and causes of death during the Crimean War. This graphic information helped convince Queen Victoria to improve conditions in military hospitals. Then in 1984, more than 100 years later, Lady Diana Spencer donned a red sweater festooned with many white sheep and one black one that charmed the world—infographics met hyperactive celebrity culture. And we have never looked back.
What exactly do we mean by “infographics”? An infographic is a type of visualization of data or ideas that conveys complex information in a way that can be easily and quickly understood. Think of a Venn diagram with two overlapping circles labelled “information” and “graphics design.” The part where they overlap is “visual learning.”
Infographics offer a number of learning benefits:
- Improved comprehension
- Improved ability to think critically and organize thoughts
- Improved retention and recall
ATA library resources for infographics
The Association library carries a number of excellent books on infographics:
- The Power of Infographics, by Mark Smiciklas.
- Infographics, by J. Lankow, J. Ritchie and R. Crooks.
- And of particular interest to teachers, Teaching Visual Literacy, by Nancy Frey.
ATA library online resources for infographics
The ATA librarian has compiled a vast selection of resources on infographics and much more. Go to the Association website (www.teachers.ab.ca) and click on For Members>Programs and Services>ATA Library>Educational Technology. Then spend a few minutes scrolling through excellent information on such topics as digital citizenship, digital storytelling and information literacy. You will also find a number of infographics sites (for example, Dipity, Gliffy, Infogr.am) and so much more to help you and your students navigate the vast and fascinating world of infographics. ❚
