Literacy is generally measured by gaining competency in skills which society values. Typically, literacy is associated with the spoken or written word. In Visual and verbal modes of representation in electronically mediated communication, Gunther Kress (1997) maintains that a new theory of literacy needs to emerge that takes into account the interaction of verbal and visual modes of representation, or a "multimodal" theory of literacy. As Kress (1997) explains, a "tectonic shift" has occurred after three hundred years of writing as "the" means of communication, a shift in "the system of media and modes of representation" (p. 58). From Web sites to video games and iPods, today's generation demands multimodal literacy that takes into account the increasing use of images and sounds that have relegated text to only one element of literacy.
Kress (1997) explains that there are three aspects related to this shift that are important to consider where literacy is concerned: (1) the newer relations of language and image; (2) changes to writing which may be a consequence of this; and, (3) a new theory of meaning (p. 59). A more integrated and inclusive model of multimedia or electronic literacy is required that does not automatically weight the written or spoken word over others forms of expression like images and sounds, and other forms of multi-media. One of the most important reasons for generating such a framework is to recognize the significance of visual literacy and the evolution of multi-modal texts. Through various examples like a science textbook, Kress (1997) traces the shift from the written word being dominant to images overtaking that role in many texts and electronic media. Today, in many instances, Kress (1997) argues, "the image carries the information" (p. 64).
Visual and electronic and digital texts are viewed as multi-modal forms of media that Kress (1997) argues require new paradigms o...