What is the Difference Between Visual Communication and Visual Literacy?

People often get confused between visual communication and visual literacy. The debate continues with if both are related to audio visual learning methods or lacks the essence of art.

Studies show that both the visual communication and the visual literacy are interlinked with certain differences in the areas of education and employment.

Let’s get to the point:

What is visual communication?

It is a method of communicating information or knowledge with the usage of art. Visual communication is delivered as a certificate. It is usually deployed at the bachelor’s or associate’s degree level. It gives opportunities to the students to learn about the usage of the visual devices for the purpose of informing, communicating and convincing.

What is visual literacy?

It is the system of learning by seeing. It incorporates the phenomenal idea that people can learn more easily and fast if the information is provided visually in front of them. The information can be in any form like charts, images, drawings, animations, graphs, etc.

The link between visual literacy and visual communication:

Visual literacy can be encompassed in the visual communication program. The topics of visual literacy involve information and charts on how the students are coaxed and visually enlightened. It also adds image editing, public speaking, typography, illustration, web design and print production.

The difference between visual literacy and visual communication:

Visual literacy is not rendered as a degree program as visual communication. It is rather infused in the teaching methods and a specialized course in the communication, journalism and visual design degree programs.

Again, visual communication is applying visuals and art for communication of the information and the ideas, whereas visual literacy is considered as the learning process via sight.

Let’s discuss the career information of both:

Visual Communication:

A Bachelor’s degree or a certification in Visual Communication Program enables a student to enter in various artistic and creative fields. The graduates can prove their capability as graphic designers, advertising designers. An aspired candidate can work with the web development agencies, print productions, magazines and image editing organizations.

The industries that prefer visual communication graduates:

• Game studios

• Graphic designing company

• Museums

• Media

• Publishing house

• Advertising agencies

• Design studios

• Web designing firms

• Marketing bureaus

• E-commerce

• Public relation

• Corporate house

• Creative director

• Web developer

Visual literacy:

Though a learner can’t get any separate certificate or degree in visual literacy domain, yet he/she can use the specific education in multiple types of workplace tasks. One can make beautiful presentations, operate a digital camera, and build websites through the use of visual literacy.

The following occupations can be pursued:

• Marketing manager

• Software engineer

• Web designer

• Library professional

• Media specialist

• Business trainer

• Educator

• Job in healthcare sector

• Employment in government sector

• K-12 trainers

• Technology coordinators

• Technical college professors

• Teachers of Continuing Education

• Community educators

Many schools around the globe are adopting both visual literacy and visual communication programs:

Visual literacy can be accepted as an organic concept that needs us to define as well as re-define the changing world continually. The province of digital technology lays substantial impact on our understanding of visual literacy. The present generation kids are growing under the reign of computers, tablets, and smartphones that are nothing else than visual literacy instincts that are highly developed.

Additionally, the visual communication is serving as the well-rounded undertaking for the designers. The area is solely concentrating on the clients via available visual means. It is opening the world of animation, illustration, photography, airbrushing, etc. to the students everywhere. The sphere is visual communication is broader than visual literacy.

Both the Visual literacy and visual communication are serving the purpose of saving time by delivering clear and identified messages through shared and consistent visual experience that is advancing the modern world technologically, economically and socially.

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