A New Revolution of Learning, a Summary of “Understanding Visual Rhetoric in Digital Writing Environments”

The era of paper and pen style writing is beginning to decline as technology is advancing. Writing styles are beginning to evolve, taking a more modern shape and allowing writing to incorporate images, audience interaction and sounds, something absent in paper and pen writing. In her paper “Understanding Visual Rhetoric in Digital Writing Environments“, Mary E. Hocks discusses this evolution and the incorporation of digital documents in writing. Hocks divides her paper into two sections with one section using two academic hypertextual essays to help explain the visual digital rhetoric and the other section discussing how teachers should incorporate visual digital rhetoric in their teaching. In addition to this, she also divides the visual digital rhetoric into three categories: Audience stance, transparency and hybridity. The audience stance is the way the author creates ethos and the degree of audience participation. Transparency is how familiar the terminology and concepts of the article is to the audience. Lastly, hybridity is how the site combines images and texts.

Hocks begins by examining the first academic hypertextual essay, “Monitoring Order” by Anne Wysocki. The first thing Hocks points out is how Wysocki promotes audience participation by providing interactive text and images, allowing the audience to progress through the essay in an order that they chose. As a result, the essay promotes active reading and decreases attention fatigue, something that all too common with long academic articles or papers.

The saying "A picture is worth a million words" is beginning to be proven in the modern day style of writing (bloging etc). Sourced from Transformation Marketing
The saying “A picture is worth a million words” is beginning to be proven in the modern day style of writing (bloging etc). Sourced from Transformation Marketing

The second thing Hocks discusses is how Wysocki establishes transparency by using a familiar format, colors and page layout. In addition to this, Wysocki uses “tiles” to help the reader not get lost in the text and have a sense of direction. Once again, when a person reads large amounts of text at a time, they can easily become lost physically or mentally in the paper. Lastly, Hocks focuses on is the Hybridity of “Monitoring Order”. Wysocki combines texts and images in a way that allows readers to immerse themselves into the theme and topic of the site. This in turn caters to the individuality in humans, since it allows the audience to choose their path through the essay. 

In addition to this, Hocks also examines “The Ballad of the Internet Nutball”, written by Christine Boese. Similar to “Monitoring Order”, Boese establishes audience stance and hybridity by incorporating music, interactive images and texts. Hocks also notes that Boese allows participants to add to the site, constantly evolving the site, increasing user participation and reducing attention fatigue. However, unlike the high transparency in “Monitoring Order”, Boese’s essay had a low transparency since it was limited to the fans who understood the theme of the site. Despite this, not all rhetoric has to be designed in a way to cater to everyone. Similar to paper and pen style writing, certain books are understood only by a certain pool of people and not by others. None the less, Hock shows how transparency plays a role in the visual digital rhetoric. 

Example of Xenaverse. Sourced from:
Example of Xenaverse. Sourced from: The Legendary Wikia

In part two of her paper, Hocks discusses how teachers should incorporate visual digital rhetoric. Hocks uses an online student project about Shakespeare to explain the positive impacts of introducing visual digital rhetoric in the classroom. The students were tasked to design a website which collected and created discussion about Shakespeare’s colorblind casting. By giving the students the ability to create their own sites, they were able to immerse themselves more into the material than they ever would in a traditional classroom setting. This is because the students were given the freedom to design a site that catered to their needs, rather than being restricted to a traditional style set learning path. For example, the students learned and created  interactivity by creating discussion boards and surveys. They created high transparency by using familiar techniques and styles. Lastly the students established hybridity by combining interactive texts and images (Hocks).

By learning how to engage their audience, establish transparency and incorporate hybridity, Hocks argues that the students now have gained a much greater understanding of their unit of study. She also argues that by incorporating visual digital rhetoric in a classroom setting, will cater to a students needs better and will result  in giving students a beneficial learning experience. The advancement technology also means a more advanced society and as a result, the style of learning needs to adapt and evolve as well.

Bibliography

Hocks, Mary E. “Understanding Visual Rhetoric in Digital Writing Environments.” College Composition and Communication 2003: 629. JSTOR Journals. Web. 7 Mar. 2016.

3,184 thoughts on “A New Revolution of Learning, a Summary of “Understanding Visual Rhetoric in Digital Writing Environments”

  1. Online learning is the best way to manage your academic life. Here many talented tutors join to make you understand the actual meaning of Education. Furthermore, it doesn’t stop you to ask someone to write my paper online on my behalf. Many students hurt from the mental pressure because of doing multiple assignments at a given time. Hire our skilled experts today to write my paper in Australia.

  2. I’m a coach and blogger. I love helping people, especially when it comes to improving their lives. I’ve been through a lot in my life, and I want to share my story with as many people as possible so that they can learn from my experiences. If you’re looking for a career with high earning potential, you should consider one of the best paying jobs in basic industries. These careers offer stability and growth potential, making them a wise choice for anyone looking to start their career. Check out this detailed article on the best paying jobs in basic industries today!

  3. Services we offer to Poland tourists in Delhi include straightforward, apply for Poland Work Visa at the best rate, The services we provide to Poland tourists in Delhi include, Apply For Poland Work Visa With Best Poland Work Visa for Indian.

  4. If you’re looking for a US Tourist Visa from India then you’ve come to the right place. Consultations are available for tourists who wish to obtain a US tourist visa in Delhi. It is possible for tourists to obtain non-immigrant visas, such as the B1 and B2. Furthermore, business visas permit holders of these visas to work for American companies. Online applications are available for USA tourist visas. We can provide you with more information on our website or through our sales team.

  5. Visa Consultants in Delhi The Continental Immigration company is one of the leading immigration consultants in Delhi, India. The company has been recognized as one of the leading consultants in the field of international education.

  6. H1B Visa Consultants in India In addition to offering advice on worldwide immigration options, H1B Visa Consultants in India Continental is a company that specialises in visa and immigration consulting. As a registered company, we are able to provide services.

  7. Mexico Visa for Indians Is available for citizens of India with regular passports, a visa is required to enter Mexico. citizens of India who have regular passports need to get a visa. The Mexican Embassy in India is the only place where you can submit.

  8. Hello, I’m Amelia Wilson, a chiropractor who has assisted thousands of patients in improving their vitality, mobility, and pain relief without using drugs, surgeries, or needles. When searching for the best chiropractor near you, it’s important to note that chiropractors have different areas of expertise. If you ask me to name the top Chiropractic clinic, I suggest Finn Chiropractic Finn Chiropractic. It offers a wide variety of chiropractors, so if you’re experiencing any pain or discomfort, consider consulting with one of its professionals.

  9. Founded in 2008, and regularly ranked as one of the world’s fastest growing companies, alphasights is now a worldwide team of 300+ and continues to grow steadily.

  10. website ini sangat memberikan banyak informasi yang menarik. terima kasih telah memposting info yang luar biasa terima kasih
    expertfaq.com klik website saya juga. terima kasih atas bantuannya

  11. Learn the Procedure to Reconcile your bank accounts and credit card accounts in QuickBooks

    Reconciling bank and credit card accounts assists the users in catching any irregular, incorrect or unidentified transactions that might end up in wrong account balance. Reconciliation is the process in which the user can compare the financial transactions that are entered in the QuickBooks software with the bank/credit card company’s records.
    https://www.hostdocket.com/reconcile-an-account-in-quickbooks-desktop/

  12. One of the common QuickBooks Error is 15102 which users often get when downloading a payroll or update QuickBooks desktop. In this article we will discuss about its possible causes as well as ways to fix this error. After applying these given steps, you will able to download the latest payroll update and QuickBooks Desktop update

  13. QuickBooks Error Code 404 is a Runtime Error and caused due to many variables. It’s more important to get troubleshoot it as on possible causes to keep it from recurring this error.

    Error Status Message: ‘Error 404’ QuickBooks has encountered a problem and needs to close. We are sorry for the inconvenience. The image as shown below is similar which appears on your desktop

    https://www.hostdocket.com/fix-quickbooks-error-code-404/

  14. Learn These DIY solutions to fix QuickBooks Display issues on your Own

    QuickBooks assists tens of millions of business owners around the globe to meet their goals. It’s fast and easy to use. The software’s competency and overall user experience, however, is at the best when the proper display of QB is accessible.
    https://www.hostdocket.com/quickbooks-display-issues/

  15. DeltaAirlines

    Are you looking for a great deal on a last minute flight? Then look no further than Delta! Delta offers amazing last minute deals on flights all over the world.Delta Last Minute
    Whether you’re looking for a last minute upgrade, cancellation, or change, Delta has you covered. WithDelta Last Minute, you can get great deals on flights to your favorite destinations. So don’t wait any longer, book your next flight with Delta today!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *