Linear and

Non-Linear Text
 In academics, text refers to anything that can be read
which is used to send and convey a particular message. Your
notes during a discussion, the newspaper that your father
reads every morning, the cookbooks that your mother uses to
check recipes, the magazines your brothers and sisters are
browsing are examples of text. Aside from these, the maps
you use, street signs you see on streets, different graphs, and
illustrations you see almost everywhere are also considered
texts.
Texts are categorized as either
linear or non-linear.
Linear Text
Linear text refers to traditional texts which
are those texts that use words in order to
form sentences and paragraphs. This type of
text needs to be read from the beginning up
to the end to get and understand the
message of the writer.
Examples of Linear Text:

Newspapers
Books
Short Stories
Non-Linear Text
Non-linear text is the opposite of linear text.
As its name suggest, this type of text uses words
combined with symbols and graphs to convey
and give information. In this type of text, the
reader does not have to go through the text
sequentially in order to make sense of text. The
reader decides where to start reading or what
parts to read.
Examples of Non-Linear Text
Timeline
Presents relevant
information and to be
understood by the
readers in chronological
order. This helps the
readers understand the
order of certain events
and how a particular
events leads to another
Flowchart
Shows the sequence
of events from start to
finish to document a
process.
Graph
Illustrates the
relationship between
two or more variables
using points, bars,
lines, or differentiated
parts of a whole.
 Examples of
 Bar Graph Graph
Uses bars to
present a
comparison of
numerical
information
 Line Graph
Uses lines to
present a trend or
change observed
over a period of time
 Pie Graph
Uses a circle which
is divided into slices
to show how a
whole is divided into
parts.
 Table
Summarizes and
organizes
information (maybe
in words or
numbers) using
rows and column
 Diagram
Illustrates of an
object or scene in
which specific
individual parts are
labeled
 Organizational Chart
Represents an
organizational
structure,
highlighting the
different jobs,
departments, and
responsibilities
 Map
Shows a scale
representation of a
whole or part of a
specific area.
 Venn Diagram
Highlights the
similarities and
difference of two
objects being
compared