Graphicacy: Do Readers of Science Textbooks Need It?

Abstract

In contrast to literacy and numeracy, graphicacy is under-explored. Yet it is not only linked to fundamental cognitive abilities, but is also important in all areas of instruction. This paper reports an analysis of the graphics that appear in K-12 science school books. The questions were the following: what skills might school students need to understand these graphics? Do books provide guidance or instructions to help students process these graphics? We found that many graphics required a high level of graphicacy, in terms of strategies and skills required to understand them. Moreover, strategic guidance or instructional help were rarely provided.