Page 1 of 10

Lesson 3: Evaluating Messages and Images of Different Text Types

Learning Outcomes
At the end of the lesson, you are expected to achieve the following:
1. Evaluate multimodal texts critically to enhance receptive skills (i.e. listening, reading, viewing).
2. Convey ideas through oral, audio-visual and/or web-based presentations for different target audiences
in local and global settings using appropriate registers.
3. Adopt awareness of audience and context in presenting ideas.

EVALUATING MESSAGES AND/OR IMAGES OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF TEXTS REFLECTING

DIFFERENT CULTURES

As discussed in Lesson 1, the advancements in digital technology paved the way to innovative
modes and platforms of communication. The massive and rapid developments in digital communications
ushered in a new era of communication that does not simply rely on words, but also on images and other
semiotics of the channel used to convey the message.

The effects of cultural and global issues to communication were highlighted in previous discussions,
as well as the impact of effective communication to society and the world. This has highlighted the
importance of exploring the concept of World Englishes, or as defined by CelceMurcia (2014), the
regionally distinct varieties of English that have arisen in parts of the world where there is a long and
often colonial history of English being used in education, commerce and government.

There is no debate that the English language has become the most widely used language for most
purposes of communication in international diplomacy, business, science, education and entertainment.
Over time, this widespread use of English – spoken side by side with local languages – has given rise to
local varieties of English with their own standards. Examples of World Englishes are Indian English,
West African English, Singapore English, and Filipino English.
One major issue that has been raised with respect to these established varieties is that they are
often not fully intelligible to users of other varieties of English. For example, a Filipino ordering food in a
restaurant in Singapore for the first time would be confused when he is asked, “Having here, or take
away?” because in the Philippines, they are more accustomed to “Dine in, or take out?” Kirkpatrick (2007)
proposes a scale with two extremes that characterize this problem:

Extreme 1: The goal of national or regional identity. People use a regional variety of English with
its specific grammar, structure and vocabulary to affirm their own national or ethnic identity (e.g.
Only Filipinos use the terms “senatoriable”, “congressman”, “chancing”, and “bedspacer”, among
others, and use these when communicating with other Filipinos).

Extreme 2: The goal of intelligibility. Users of a regional variety should ideally still be readily
understood by users of English everywhere else in the world to fully participate in the use of
English as an international language (e.g. Users of Filipino English have to understand that they
have to use “bin” instead of “trash can” or “lift” instead of “elevator” when in a country using
British English).

The challenge is to find a good balance between the identity-intelligibility extremes. Hence,
speakers of the English language may resort to code-switching (i.e., using English and another language
in the same statement). For example, Filipinos may use a strongly local version of Filipino English to
communicate with fellow Filipinos using English as medium, but they should use a weaker and more
formal version when communicating with users of other varieties of English, especially when
international intelligibility is necessary.

The Power of Words and Images

Look at the illustration on international arrivals below. Answer the five key questions that follow.

Page 2 of 10
Five Key Questions:
1. What is the message?
2. What is the purpose of the message?
3. How is the message conveyed (by the text and/or image)?
4. Who is the target audience of the message?
5. What other ways of presenting the message are there?

Before effectively engaging in multicultural communication, people have to be ready and

knowledgeable for situations such as the one demonstrated in the illustration. If anything unplanned or
unanticipated comes up, there must be alternative ways of communicating the same message without
being offensive.

The illustration above sends a relatively vivid and powerful message not just through the use of a
careful juxtaposition of text and illustration, but also because of the other semiotics or elements such as
color combinations. This is called a multimodal presentation.

Multimodality
Multimodality is a fairly new concept in the general academic setting, but can be a very powerful
tool in light of digital and multicultural communication. A text or output is considered multimodal if it
uses two or more communication modes to make meaning. It shows different ways of knowledge
representations and meaning-making, and investigates contributions of semiotic resources (language,
gestures, images) that are co-deployed across various modalities (visual, aural, somatic, etc.). Most
importantly, multimodality highlights the significance of interaction and integration in constructing a
coherent text

A multimodal text can either be one of the following:

 Paper (books, comics, posters, brochures)

 Digital (slide presentations, blogs, web pages, social media, animation, film, video games
 Live (performance or an event)
 Transmedia (A story is told using multiple delivery channels through a combination of platforms, such
as comics, film, and video games all working as part of the same story with the same message.)

The creation of multimodal texts and outputs requires a creative design concept that orchestrates
the purposive combination of text, color, photo, sound, spatial design, language, gestures, animations and
other semiotics, all with the unitary goal of bringing meaning to life.

The following are examples of posters that showcase good multimodality.

This is a poster entitled “Run for Rio”, a run-for-a-cause event organized for the benefit of the
Philippine International Volunteers for the 2013 World Youth Day which was held in Rio de Janeiro
Brazil.

Page 3 of 10
 The inclusion of the multi-colored bird, the official mascot of that year’s World Youth Day, is
crucial in juxtaposing it with the actual text on top of the photo. Since Blue is used as the poster’s
dominant color, the multi-colored symbol is highlighted that even if the onlooker fails to read the text, the
purpose of the event will still be obvious.

The same reason goes with the use of the silhouette of a man running (suggestive of the nature of
the event) and the Christ the Redeemer statue on top of mountain (the symbolic representation of Rio de
Janeiro.)
The use of Red in the text for the amount and the running distance puts attention to the event
details without overshadowing the other details. The inclusion of the biblical quote and the cross also add
to the religious motive of the event, thus making it coherent.
https://runforrio.wordpress.com/

The poster is titled “Concert for Kids”, which is fund-raising concert for the New Jersey (NJ) Kids
Foundation in the U.S.

The dominant photo is that of a guitar, suggesting the music-inclined nature of the event. The use
of candies is suggestive of the concert’s beneficiaries, who are kids with special needs. The use of various
colors adds to the notion on the playful nature of kids.

The font used is also playful rather than sharp, and the dominant color of light blue is light on the
eyes, as well as the other color palettes used in the poster.

Both posters, Run for Rio and Concert for Kids, demonstrate purposive use of semiotics to forward
a specific message. These are successful in meaning making through the interplay of various elements.

http://do512.com/events/2016/10/8/hush-hush-music-bash
Page 4 of 10
In creating a multimodal text, the Purpose, Audience, Context must all be considered.

 As to purpose, the creator of the text must be clear on the message and the reason(s) why the message
has to be delivered.

 As to audience, the nature, interests and sensitivities of the target audience must be considered so the
text will not be offensive and hurt people’s sensibilities.

 As to context, the message should be clearly delivered through various semiotic resources, and in
consideration of the various situations where and how the text will be read by different people having
different cultural backgrounds.

Page 5 of 10
 References

Academic Writing Style. (n.d). First-Year Seminar Handbook. Mercer University.

Ahmad, I. (2017). Top 10 reasons for using social media. Social Media Today.

Androutsopoulos, J. (2011). Language change and digital media: A review of conceptions andevidence.
Language Standardisation in Europe. Nik Coupland & Tore Kristiansen(Eds.). University of
Hamburg.

Bem, DJ. (2020). Writing the Empirical Journal Article. Cornell University.

Biggs, J. (2003). Aligning Teaching and Assessment to Curriculum Objectives. Learning and
Teaching Support Network.

Boscoloa, P., Barbara, A., and Quarisaa, M. (2007). Improving the Quality of Students' Academic Writing:
An Intervention Study. Studies in Higher Education 32 (August 2007): 419-438.

Branham, L. (2005) The Communication Problem Solver: Simple Tools and Techniques for Busy
Managers, Nannette Rundle Carroll (AMACOM Div American Mgmt Assn, 2009) 7 Hidden
Reasons Employees Leave, (AMACOM 2005).

Candlin, C. (2016). Academic Writing Step-By-Step: A Research-based Approach. Bristol, CT: Equinox
Publishing Ltd.

Celce-Murcia, M. (2014). Teaching English in the Context of World Englishes. Teaching English as a
Second or Foreign Language, Fourth Edition. National Geographic Learning, part of Heinle
Cengage Learning. Boston, USA.

Coates, S. (2011). Finding Credible Sources. University of Oklahoma's School of Library and Information
Studies.

College of Education (1999). A Handbook for Research Report Writing. University of the Philippines.

Crystal, D. (2011). Internet Linguistics. London: Routledge.

Driver, J. and van Aalst. M. (2010). You Say More than What You Think. Three Rivers Press.

Hartley, J. (2008). Academic Writing and Publishing: A Practical Guide. New York: Routledge. Writing
Center. Colorado Technical College.

Herring, S. (1996). Computer-Mediated Communication: Linguistic, Social and Cross-Cultural

Perspectives.

Institute for Writing and Rhetoric (2020). What Is an Academic Paper? Dartmouth College.

Johnson, R. (2015). Improve Your Writing Skills. Manchester, UK: Clifton Press.

Kirkpatrick, A. (2007). World Englishes: Implications for international communication and English
language teaching. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

Logan, R. (2010). Understanding New Media: Extending Marshall McLuhan. Peter Lang.

Murray, R. and Moore, S. (2006). The Handbook of Academic Writing: A Fresh Approach. New York: Open
University Press.

Nygaard, LP. (2015). Writing for Scholars: A Practical Guide to Making Sense and Being Heard. Second
edition. Los Angeles, CA: Sage Publications.

Ortiz-Ospina, E. (2019). The rise of social media. Our World in Data. University of Oxford, England

Page 6 of 10
Rockowitz and Rockowitz (2020). The Documented Essay: General Guidelines. Dr. Murray and Anna C.
Rockowitz Writing Center (RWC), Hunter College.

Silvia, PJ. (2007). How to Write a Lot: A Practical Guide to Productive Academic Writing. Washington,
DC: American Psychological Association.

Shortis, T. (2009). Revoicing Txt: Spelling, vernacular orthography and ‘unregimented writing’. In
Connected Minds, Emerging Cultures: Cybercultures in Online Learning by S. Wheeler (Ed.).
Charlotte, NC: IAP. 225–246.

Sword, H. (2012). Stylish Academic Writing. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Tejada, K. (2017). Refusing to be Alone Together. Sensus Communis VI: The Lathe Journal of Batangas
State University.

Tejada, K., Agena, MG, Rodriguez, E., and Panganiban, P. (2018). Purposive Communication. Muntinlupa:
Pandaylahi Publishing House, Inc.

Tucker, K., Derelian, D., and Rouner, D. (1997). Building the case: Position papers, backgrounders, fact
sheets, and biographical sketches. In Public relations writing: An issue-driven behavioral approach
(pp.79-85). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Turkle, S. (2012). The Flight from Conversation. The New York Times, Sunday Review. April 21, 2012

University of Southern California Libraries (2020). Importance of Good Academic Writing. Research
Guides. United Nations Association of the United States of America and the Business Council for
the United Nations (2020). How to Write a Position Paper. | 801 Second Avenue, 2nd Floor New
York, NY 10017.

Verallo, B.M. and Larion, R.M. (2018). Communication Aids and Strategies using Tools of Technology.
Purposive Communication.

Weaver, R., Bost, L., Karssorla, M., McKinney-Holley, K. and Crowther, K. (2016). Successful College
Composition (3rd Edition). Galileo Open Learning Materials, Galileo, University System of Georgia,
USA.

Williams, M. (2004).Going worldwide, Marketing the entire globe. Sema International, May 2004.

Web sources:

Artistry House Website (2020). Language Image. Available at

https://www.google.com/search?q=language+images.

Baker, M. and Milutinovic, J.(2016) The Importance of Face-To-Face Communication in the Digital Age.
Available at https://www.aib.edu.au/blog/communication/face-to-facecommunication-in-the-
digital-age/

Batangas State University Website (2020). Batangas State University Library Photo. Available at
http://dione.batstate-u.edu.ph/library/#/.

Bryden John and Silverman Eric (2019). Underlying Socio-Political Processes Behind the 2016
US Election. PLoS ONE 14(4): e0214854. Available at https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0214854.

Cambridge Dictionary Website (2020). Cliché. Available at

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/cliche?q=clich%C3%A9.

Cambridge Dictionary Website (2020). Slang. Available at

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/slang.

Campbell, A. (2011). Ten Communication Problems and Issues in the Workplace. Available at
https://www.brighthubpm.com/resource-management/101627-top-ten-teamcommunication-issues-
and-how-to-avoid-them/#reference--resource

Page 7 of 10
Crafford, L. (2020). The 7 Rules of Virtual Meeting Etiquette Every Professional Should Know. Available
at https://blog.gotomeeting.com/7-rules-virtual-meeting-etiquetteevery-professional-know/
Creating multimodal texts. Available at http://creatingmultimodaltexts.com/

Consilium.europa.eu Website (2020). Joint statement of the Members of the European Council. Available
athttps://www.consilium.europa.eu/media/43076/26-vc-euco-statementen.pdf.

Ec.europa.eu Website (2020). COVID-19: Commission sets out European coordinated response to counter
the economic impact of the Coronavirus. Available at
https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_20_459.

Effective Communication Skills. Available at

http://promeng.eu/downloads/trainingmaterials/ebooks/soft-skills/effective-
communicationskills.pdf

Eric-ed-gov Website (2020). Education Resources Information Center (ERIC) Logo’s Image. Available at
https://news.milne-library.org/eric-eric-ed-gov-has-a-new-look/.
Fragile States Forum Website (2020) Sociopolitical Analysis. Available at
http://fragilestates.org/about/articles-and-publications/topics/sociopolitical-analysis/.

Freepik.com Website (2020). Elegant Red and Gold Modern Background’s Image 1. Premium Vector.
Available at https://www.google.com/search?q=freepik.com.

Freepik.com Website (2020). Close up Shot of Businessman’s Hands with Pen’s Image. Available at
https://www.google.com/search?q=writing+hands+image.

Freepik.com Website (2020). Luxury Background Elegant Blue and Gold’s Image 1. Available at
https://www.google.com/search?q=freepik.com.

Freepik.com Website (2020). Luxury Background Elegant Blue and Gold’s Image 2. Available at
https://www.google.com/search?q=freepik.com.

Freepik.com Website (2020). Luxury Background Elegant Blue and Gold’s Image 3. Available
at https://www.google.com/search?q=freepik.com.

Freepik.com Website (2020). Luxury Background Elegant Blue and Gold’s Image 4. Available at
https://www.google.com/search?q=freepik.com.

Freepik.com Website (2020). Luxury Background Elegant Blue and Gold’s Image 5. Available at
https://www.google.com/search?q=freepik.com.

Freepik.com Website (2020). Luxury Background Elegant Red and Gold’s Image 1. Available at
https://www.google.com/search?q=freepik.com.

Freepik.com Website (2020). Luxury Background Elegant Red and Gold’s Image 2. Available at
https://www.google.com/search?q=freepik.com.

Freepik.com Website (2020). Luxury Background Elegant Red and Gold’s Image 3. Available at
https://www.google.com/search?q=freepik.com.

Freepik.com Website (2020). Luxury Background Elegant Red and Gold’s Image 4. Available at
https://www.google.com/search?q=freepik.com.

Google.com Website (2020). Academic Writing Image. Available at

Google.com/search?q=Academic+Writingimages.

GCFglobal.org Website (2020). Contraction. Available at

https://edu.gcfglobal.org/en/grammar/contractions/1/.

How to Write a Follow-up Letter. Available at https://www.learngrammar.net/a/write-a-followup-letter.

How to Write an Endorsement Letter. Retrieved on August 1, 2020 from

https://www.writeexpress.com/How-to-write-an-endorsement-letter.html#requestendorsement

Page 8 of 10
HubSot Blog Website (2020). Punctuation Image. Available at
https://www.google.com/search?q=punctuation.

Internet Public Library(ipl2) Facebook Website (2020). Internet Public Library(ipl2) Logo’s
Image. Available at https://www.google.com.

Journal Publishing.com Website (2020). Google Scholar Logo’s Image. Available at

https://www.google.com.

Last, S. (2019). Correspondence: Text Messages, Emails, Memos, and Letters Netiquette. Available at
https://pressbooks.bccampus.ca/technicalwriting/ chapter/correspondence/

Mastering Soft Skills for Workplace Success. Available at

https://www.dol.gov/odep/topics/youth/softskills/softskills.pdf

Netiquette from Communicating Online: Netiquette, by UBC Centre for Teaching, Learning and
Technology. Avialable at https://openoregon.pressbooks. pub/ technicalwriting/chapter/1-3-
netiquette/ NHS Library-LibGuides Website (2020). RefSeek Logo’s Image. Available at
https://www.google.com.

Oxford Lexico Website (2020). Figures of Speech. Available at

https://www.lexico.com/definition/figure_of_speech.

Pineda, Erin (2020). Elements of a Successful Political Theory Paper. Yale Poorvu Center for Teaching
and Learning. Available at https://poorvucenter.yale.edu/sites/default/files/files/PLSC118_Writing-
Guide_0.pdf.

Pinterest Website (2020). Tone Image. Available at https://www.google.com/search?q=tone+images.

Pinterest Website (2020). Higher Order Thinking Skills Image. Available at

https://www.google.com/search?q=higher=order=thinking=skill+images.

Purdue Online Writing Lab (2020). Appropriate Language: Overview. College of Liberal Arts, Purdue
University. Available at
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/academic_writing/using_appropriate_language/index.h
tml.

Purdue Online Writing Lab (2020). How to Use Quotation Marks. College of Liberal Arts, Purdue
University. Available at https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/punctuation/quotation_marks/index.
html.

SlideServe Website (2020). Diction Image. Available at https://www.google.com/search?q=diction+images.

SlideShare Website (2020). Thesis-Driven Image. Available at

https://www.google.com/search?q=Thesis+Driven+images.

The Nology Website (2020). About.com Logo’s Image. Available athttps://www.google.com.

The Reading/Writing Center (2020). Invention: Five Qualities of Good Writing. Hunter College. Available
at http://www.hunter.cuny.edu/rwc/handouts/the-writingprocess-1/invention/Five-Qualities-of-
Good-Writing.

The Walden Writing Center (2020). Scholarly Voice: Tone. Walden University. Available at
https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/writingcenter/scholarlyvoice.

The WriteAtHome Blog Website (2020). The Dictionary’s Image. Available at https://www.google.com/. .

The Writing Center (2020). Colon. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Available at
https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/semi-colons-colons-and-dashes/.

The Writing Center (2020). Style: College Writing. University of North Carolina. Available at
https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/style/.

Page 9 of 10
Today’s Businesses-WordPress.com Website (2020). Wikipedia Logo’s Image. Available at
https://www.google.com.

Tulsa Community College Library (2020). Avoiding Plagiarism: Fair Use. Tulsa Community College.
Available at https://guides.library.tulsacc.edu/c.php?g=918045&p=6622073.

Vista-Heights 8th Grade Science Weebly Website (2020). Evidence-based Reasoning Image. Available at
https://www.google.com/search?q=evidence-based+reasoning+images.

Whalen, S. (2020) Rubric from Contemporary Health Issues Research Paper. Available at
http://academics.adelphi.edu/edu/hpe/healthstudies/whalen/HED601_r2.shtml. by
cornellcollege.edu.

Writing Center (2020). Academic Writing. Writing Center. Colorado Technical College. Available at
https://libguides.sph.uth.tmc.edu/c.php?g=572647&p=3959489.

Writing Center (2012). Style, Diction, Tone, and Voice. Wheaton College. Available at
https://www.wheaton.edu/academics/services/writing-center/writingresources/style-diction-tone-
and-voice/.

Xavier University Library (2020). How to Write a Position Paper. Available at

https://is.muni.cz/el/1423/podzim2010/SOC978/position_paper.pdf.

Page 10 of 10