Scholars and students practice literacy, numeracy, and graphicacy in school. In this educational triumvirate, graphicacy remains the less familiar term. Graphicacy is an ability, a fluency in making and reading visualizations and charts. How might scholars working in digital media practice graphic literacy in the shaping and sharing of their work? By working with more awareness of graphic literacy, scholars can also become more inclusive. In this illustrated essay, I will describe how my work in visualizing survey data provides insight into graphic literacy. Survey data is a primary data source. These observations have the potential for meaning yet need a meaningful structure and shape. While structuring, exploring, and visualizing this survey data, diverse world views begin to emerge. Digital scholars can also identify when to draw upon data-driven or conceptual content. By creating interactive survey data visualizations, we can partake in more inclusive humanistic inquiries and reading experiences.
