- Graphic Novels are known as Graphic Texts.
- Picture Books are referred to as Visual Texts.
I was told that the school library should use these terms to prepare students for tertiary study.
I could tell straight away that it didn't seem right, so I checked out how such texts are referred to at major Sydney Universities.
There was no reference to Graphic Novels as Graphic Texts. With Picture Books, there were different classifications, subjects or format but Picture Book emerged as the most common term used.
Also I observed that the term Graphic Text to descriptive Graphic Novels is misleading. A Graphic Text tends to be content that explains information or ideas such as diagrams, tables, graphs, photographs and illustrations. It tends to be more relevant to non-fiction items.
This week, I also posted a survey on various Teacher Librarian forums to gain a greater insight as to how Graphic Novel and Picture Book collections are referred to in school libraries. Click Here to complete the survey.
Next week, I will share findings while I have shared some interim results on one of the forums.
