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This research project examined how educational facilities are perceived and used by the occupants. It sought to inform the design of effective learning environments in elementary schools through a heightened awareness of the needs of the occupants and an understanding of how they use their school facilities. Project objectives included the following: (1) to increase awareness of the needs of facility users by encouraging a dialogue between designers, educators, and facility occupants; (2) to develop a knowledge base that will lead to the design of effective learning environments; and (3) to assemble a set of visual examples of effective learning environments that can be used as a resource to facilitate communication between architects and educators. The project involved the case study of three elementary schools: Irwin Avenue Open Elementary School in Charlotte, North Carolina; Grasonville Elementary School in Grasonville, Maryland; and Cougar Elementary School in Manassas Park, Virginia. In addition to detailed building descriptions with photographs, significant findings were: (1) a sense of community at multiple scales provides students with a sense of belonging and a sense of place; (2) functional spaces that allow for multiple uses and a variety of tasks encourage students to make choices for themselves, fostering the development of individual responsibility; and (3) experiential learning takes place when a student is engaged in an activity; active participation allows students to apply what they learn and helps them define their interests, thereby contributing to a sense of self. Implications for designers are also discussed. Appendices contain interview questions, the survey instrument, and school floor plans. (EV)

This study adopts innovative self-study research methods to explore the effectiveness of teachers' use of self-referenced activities designed for the development of personal teaching portfolios. Two short video presentations, along with participant and instructor workshop guides provided necessary instructions and materials. Personalized classroom design and photo activities were completed within a teacher education workshop aimed at developing personal portfolios. Data collection included written/oral activities and videotaped group discussions. Four criterion selected teachers engaged in activities that required the re-design of classroom activities and the use of personal photos. Results indicated that all participants were able to successfully redesign conventional classroom activities as constructivist classroom activities. Photo activities were found to be motivating and relevant to all participants. Recommendations offer insights into future constructivist learning research, the potential benefits of self-referenced knowledge, and the use of self-study research methods. (Contains 33 references.) (Author/AEF)

This document describes a new $168 million 14-story building for Baruch College of the City University of New York located near Gramercy Park in Manhattan and containing 40 percent of Baruch's total campus area in one building envelope. The report outlines the design challenges and resolutions and provides numerous design drawings, floor plans, and photographs. (EV)

This study examined the perceptions of African American college students about the campus environment at a predominantly white university, using reflexive photographs and photo elicitation interviews. Five female and five male students were asked to take photographs on campus that illustrated their impressions of the university or that would help them to describe their impressions. Participants also recorded their thoughts and feelings about the campus in a notebook and completed interviews in which they were asked to interpret their photographs. Six overall impressions of the campus emerged: campus beauty; consciousness of being black; influence of Greek-letter organizations; prevalence of voluntary racial and cultural separation; and preparation for the future. The participants also reported that the employment of an alternative data representation promoted a deep level of reflective thinking, one that they thought went deeper than if they had been asked only to participate in interviews. Some of the students also reported that the visual component increased their level of commitment to completing participation in the study. (Contains 55 references.) (MDM)

Total comprehension and understanding of visual images (particularly moving images) are the result of a series of complex biological (brain) and mental (mind) processes and activities. Whereas perceptual psychology and neurophysiology are among the two main academic disciplines that explain the functions performed by the organs of visual and auditory perception (eyes, ears, brain), cognitive and behavioral psychologies are the main academic disciplines that explain the mental activities, processes, and functions of the mind. In this paper the transformation of the biological precepts into mental concepts is discussed as they relate to recognizing and understanding moving visual images. Specifically, this paper reviews the various biological and mental functions of the human brain as they relate to moving images, discusses how visual precepts (codified visual bits) are transformed into visual concepts (holistic visual units), and provides suggestions as to the construction of moving images, particularly televised images. (Contains 31 references.) (Author)

One of the most interesting challenges facing educators today is how to engage students in meaningful study of the environment in which they live. This paper presents the benefits of studying scientific data from an aesthetic point of view. The visual display of the earth's surface through aerial photographs and satellite map images was used as the basis for interpretive art works created with dyed silk by high school students at the Pennsylvania Governor's School for Agricultural Sciences. Three main criteria were used to evaluate the final pieces: (1) use of color, (2) design (composition), and (3) approach (meaning). Final evaluations of the course suggested that it was a very satisfying experience for the students. Some of the outcomes gained through the exploration of mapping included: the development of visual literacy skills, including an ability to read symbols and layer information; an increase in knowledge pertaining to the origins and use of remote sensing data; and continued development of an aesthetic eye in the creation of unique works of art. (AEF)

The importance of visuals to communication is nothing new. Visuals attract more attention, convey more information more quickly, and are more memorable and possibly even more believable than text. What is new in communication is the extensive use of visuals in on-line publications. While visuals take a long time to materialize on the computer screen, this may not always be the case; therefore, it is worthwhile asking how important visuals are to on-line browsers and readers. In a study, 2 on-line publications were viewed by 30 undergraduates at Weber State University. (Utah). About 30% of the subjects had never viewed an on-line publication. Results showed that subjects looking at the visual version spent an average of 14 minutes longer viewing and reading; further, they read more stories in the publication than their counterparts looking at the non-visual version. Results also showed that those viewing the visual version were able to recall slightly more stories than their counterparts. In response to a question after the reading section of the study, participants said they preferred the visual over the non-visual version of the publication. It appears that readers on-line would prefer to have their news prioritized and organized for them in much the same manner as it is currently done in print versions. (Includes 16 notes.) (TB)

This paper discusses problems and ethical issues in obtaining interview data from young children and presents the "phototalk" method (the use of photographs to facilitate interviews with young children). The method was used in a study of young children's transition to school. Four interviews were conducted with each child, with the first and fourth using photographs. The first interview incorporated 31 photographs of students and teachers involved in a range of activities at school. After talking with the parents while the child played with toys and became accustomed to the researcher's presence, the first interview with the child regarding their initial perceptions of school was conducted. The fourth interview was conducted at the end of their first year in school and concerned their confidence, friendships, perceptions of the home-school partnership, and thoughts about the approaching transition to the next grade. Specific questions were matched to the pictures. Findings indicated that photographs gave a focus to the interviews and kept the children's attention. The placement of photographs in an album seemed to influence the children's response. Children were most effectively interviewed in pairs, although this practice involved difficulty in recording both children's answers unless the interviews were tape recorded. Photographs were also helpful in building relationships with children. A problem with using photographs was the loss in eye contact. (KB)

A study used a diffusion of innovation approach to examine the adoption of digital imaging technology at daily college newspapers and to gauge its effect on student journalists' attitudes about the credibility of news photography and their work routines. College papers are well suited for such a study because their adoption of technology is likely to be more gradual than at professional papers. The study measures adoption rates over a 3-year period using questionnaires sent to student newspapers publishing at least 4 days per week. Measurement began in the early adoption stage (13%) and concluded in the late majority stage (66%). In all, 99 newspapers participated. By April 1995, 56 of them were using digital imaging technology on a routine basis. Adoption rates followed an s-curved (sigmoid) pattern. Students at the papers using digital technology said they had an easier time processing their photographic reports. Most disturbing for the photojournalism profession, however, is the pessimistic attitude these student editors expressed about the future credibility of news photos. It is possible that those who work with the computers daily learn very well how easy it is to change photographic representation without leaving a trace. Students also reported that the technology allowed for significant improvements in the way they perform their jobs in the newsroom. Response patterns suggest early adopters and majority adopters reacted differently to digital imaging. (Contains 3 figures, one table of data, and 24 notes.) (TB)

A new method was developed by the Image Permanence Institute for monitoring the effects of dynamic environmental conditions on organic materials in order to make it easier to manage the preservation of library and archives collections. This new approach to preservation management applies to the many types of scholarly resources for which research and academic institutions are responsible. The Time-Weighted Preservation Index (TWPI) provides a new way to measure and quantify how temperature and humidity changes affect the preservation quality of storage environments for paper, photographic, and magnetic tape collections, and any other type of organic material. The concept is illustrated with examples and explanations are given on how relatively small changes in storage conditions can result in significant improvements in the useful life of library and archives collections. Plans for the Preservation Environment Monitor are also described. Appendices provide information on the following: forms of deterioration in organic collection materials, deterioration mechanisms and test methods; specific origins of the preservation index (PI) model and how the PI model compares with other published models; and temperature and RH equilibration in TWPI analysis. (Contains 39 references.) (AEF)

This paper presents aspects of a study in progress on the legitimate function of fiction in research. A section on methodology describes how the study started with a project of narratives written in response to the black and white photographs of one of the collaborators. Analysis of the response process revealed a connection between fiction and truth. As the project evolved and was critiqued, the focus changed and transcriptions from presentations, stories from other doctoral students, and an eclectic group of readings moved the study from the concrete response to the photographs and narratives to the theoretical, eclectic, and philosophical. The next section describes how the study evolved and was reinterpreted in response to the specific comments of others regarding executing the work, researching for meaning, continuing the execution, acting as teacher researchers, and researching the research. A section on the researchers' own agenda touches on crafting, the ethics and aesthetics of fiction, and the function of fiction. A conclusion poses some seminal questions for future discussion and suggests that fiction can be an alternative way to meet the needs of researchers wishing to articulate sensitive issues or convey what literal language cannot. A photograph that was the basis of interpretive stories is included. (Contains 85 references.) (JB)

This paper describes a study in which a Picture Readability Index (PRI) was used to investigate initial and extended perceptions of photographs. Readability criteria for evaluating instructional text seems to have been in place for a long time, yet instructional visuals like photographs and illustrations have typically been subject to no such criteria. The PRI, developed from research in the areas of semiotics, linguistics, perception, visual literacy, and cognitive psychology, seeks to apply measurable readability criteria to these visuals. It considers first impressions gained from brief exposure, and also examines how a picture and caption are processed together during prolonged exposure. Data is coded and entered onto a nomograph for comparison between affective and cognitive domain classifications. The paper-and-pencil version of the PRI test, that was administered to a small group of students, however, is somewhat limited by its length and complexity, which may cause fatigue to have an influence on responses. Thus researchers set out to adapt the PRI test for the computer; besides eliminating the fatigue factor, the computer-assisted version would also organize data and simplify the process of projecting the image for viewing by the respondent. Adapting the PRI test into a computer-administered format involved selecting an authoring tool, flowcharting to modularize the instrument, storyboarding, scanning in photographs and drawings, creating test questions, and constructing and revising the multimedia prototype. Future study may include a computerized-adaptive version of the PRI, in which the progression of questions on the monitor will depend on prior responses. (Contains 27 references.) (BEW)

This report establishes a foundation of information about how children in classroom settings develop visual literacy. Data was gathered during five 45-minute sessions with a second and a fourth grade classroom during which children looked at pictures in four versions of the Noah's Ark tale. The intent was to elicit whatever children chose to say about their observations of the books, then have them choose a favorite version and justify that choice. A description of the classroom discussions during the sessions is presented, and focuses on the order in which the children chose to look at and discuss the books; picture content; artists' use of color and lines; and page layout. Six tables present data: order of presentation; order of choice; comments about pictures for both grade 2 and grade 4; and comments about text for both grades. Some childrens' comments are provided to illustrate the range of their concerns. It was discovered, when verbal class discussions and written descriptions about their final picture choice were compared, that the written products were far less skilled than the discussion, implying that a more effective way to capture the thoughts of the children fully would have been to tape record their comments. Contains 13 references. (MAS)

The Kodak Photo CD (compact disk) system provides a fun, new, very accessible way to integrate images into geography classroom presentations. Graphicacy deals with spatial information that can only be expressed by a graph, map, or photograph. The importance for geography students to develop visual observation and graphic interpretive skills is recognized by the National Council for Geographic Education. A simple, yet powerful means of facilitating this visual interest is through the use of still photographs which can be used to show humans in relationship to an environment, cultural or physical features in relationship with one another, and isolated cultural or physical features. Photo CD's are a simple, cost-effective, state-of-the-art means to digitally archive or catalog standard 35mm slides or print negatives. The bulky slide projector is substituted with a small, compact CD player which can be plugged into a television monitor, or be interfaced with a computer. Software packages presently available from Kodak allow the user to build photographic portfolios and integrate them with graphics and audio. The CD player can zoom in on a portion of the image, pan, and rotate the image full circle, compose, and sequence the photos from an index of 100 to 700 images. No longer is the teacher limited to the linear progression and bulky hardware of the slide projector, but rather has a tool that provides him/her with the flexibility to use images at their best time in their best measure. (KP)

In order to investigate elementary school students' understanding of historical time, this study conducted open-ended interviews with 58 children in kindergarten through sixth grade. The students were asked to place nine illustrations from various periods of American history in chronological order and to talk about the reasoning behind the order they chose. The paintings and photographs consisted of scenes broadly representative of a particular era, such as the colonial period, the 1920s, or the 1960s. The study found that even the youngest children made some basic distinctions in historical time and that those distinctions became increasingly differentiated with age. Dates, however, had little meaning for children before third grade; and although third- and fourth-graders understood the numerical basis of dates, only by fifth grade did students extensively connect particular dates with specific background knowledge. At all ages, children's placement of most pictures revealed substantial agreement with each other and with the correct order. Two appendixes contain copies of the illustrations used in the study and the interview protocol. (MDM)

This paper explores the comparability of item calibrations for three types of items: (1) text only; (2) text with photographs; and (3) text plus graphics when items are presented on written tests and computerized adaptive tests. Data are from five different medical technology certification examinations administered nationwide in 1993. The Rasch model was used to calibrate items for the two test formats. Item calibrations obtained from each administrative mode were then compared. No significant differences were found between text only item calibrations obtained from the written tests and the computerized adaptive test. While some items with photographic or figure accompaniment showed slightly different item calibrations between the administrative modes, nonstatistical explanations explain most of the minor differences discovered. The results of this investigation confirm that Rasch item calibrations from written tests are appropriate for use on computerized adaptive tests. Included are four tables and six figures. (Contains 7 references.) (Author/SLD)

To what extent can photographic readability be formalized for use as a criterion in the evaluation of instructional materials? The purpose of this study was to develop and pilot test a readability index for evaluating photographic illustrations in instructional materials. The index uses an interdisciplinary battery of methods adapted from the fields of linguistics, reading, and cognitive psychology to assess the level of visual information processing for viewers in both initial perception and prolonged encoding phases. The Picture Readability Index investigates both stages in the perception of photographs according to the comparison of affective and cognitive domain classifications on a nomograph format. Visual semiotic analysis is also used to investigate ways in which pictorial elements group to form functional ensembles or gestalts in the first eye centrations. An expert or adoption panel was used to improve the instrument during development. The present format is considered too extensive to use with large populations and in applications with limited time, even though the expert panel suggests that most of the elements included are important. Length could be made more manageable if all components were shortened. (Contains 20 references.) (Author/SLD)