Question 1
OPTION C: VISUAL LITERACY QUESTION
Text C
LESSON ACCOUNT: VISUAL LITERACY - THE MADLANGA COMMISSION
CARTOON
Activity 1: Overall sign for your lesson account
Grade: 11
Resources: Projector/smartboard, printed copies of the cartoon,
worksheet, whiteboard, markers, YouTube video: "How to analyse political
cartoons - Visual Literacy" [5 min clip]
Duration: Double period - 80 minutes
Topic: Analysing a political cartoon on The Madlanga Commission using
visual literacy skills
Three SMART lesson outcomes:
By the end of the lesson, learners will be able to:
Specific & Measurable: Show and explain 5 visual techniques used in the
cartoon - symbols, metaphor, exaggeration, caricature, and text - with
80% accuracy.
Achievable & Relevant: Distinguish between denotation and connotation in
3 sections of the cartoon to interpret the cartoonist’s message about
corruption and justice.
Time-bound: Write a 1-paragraph critical response evaluating the values
promoted in the cartoon within 15 minutes.
Activity 2: Pre-learning activity
Focus: Activate prior knowledge on commissions of inquiry and visual
literacy terms
Duration: 10 minutes
Skills: Listening, Speaking, Reading
Activity description:
I will project the cartoon title "THE MADLANGA COMMISSION" and asks:
What do you already know about commissions of inquiry in SA? Why are
they set up?Learners brainstorm in pairs.
, Quick recap using the board: Define denotation -literal meaning,
connotation - implied meaning. Also revise visual techniques: symbol,
metaphor, exaggeration, caricature, layout, text.
Show a 2-minute YouTube clip on "reading political cartoons". Justification:
This activates schema and gives learners the vocabulary needed to
unpack the cartoon. It makes the lesson learner-centred because learners
contribute their own knowledge first.
Activity 3: While learning activity - Preparation for semiotic analysis
Focus: Guided observation and labeling of visual elements
Duration: 20 minutes
Skills: Reading, Speaking, Writing
Activity description:
Teacher distributes printed copies of the cartoon. In groups of 4, I will give
learners 15 minutes to complete a worksheet:
- Column 1: List what you SEE - denotation. E.g. "3 commissioners at a
table, SA flag, money bag labeled R"
- Column 2: What could it MEAN? - connotation. E.g. "Money bag State
Capture & Corruption"
- Column 3: What technique is used? E.g. "Symbol, exaggeration"
Groups focus on 1 quadrant each: Top left "State Capture", Centre
"Commissioners", Bottom left "Erosion of Trust", Right "The Goal".
I circulate and scaffold by asking: "Why is the judge holding scales? Why is
the text 'NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW' at the bottom?"
Justification: Group work empowers learners to collaborate and construct
meaning together before whole-class discussion. It builds confidence for
semiotic analysis.
Activity 4: Visual analysis activity
Focus: Interpret the meaning and purpose of the cartoon’s visual elements
Duration: 25 minutes
Skills: Listening, Speaking, Reading, Writing
OPTION C: VISUAL LITERACY QUESTION
Text C
LESSON ACCOUNT: VISUAL LITERACY - THE MADLANGA COMMISSION
CARTOON
Activity 1: Overall sign for your lesson account
Grade: 11
Resources: Projector/smartboard, printed copies of the cartoon,
worksheet, whiteboard, markers, YouTube video: "How to analyse political
cartoons - Visual Literacy" [5 min clip]
Duration: Double period - 80 minutes
Topic: Analysing a political cartoon on The Madlanga Commission using
visual literacy skills
Three SMART lesson outcomes:
By the end of the lesson, learners will be able to:
Specific & Measurable: Show and explain 5 visual techniques used in the
cartoon - symbols, metaphor, exaggeration, caricature, and text - with
80% accuracy.
Achievable & Relevant: Distinguish between denotation and connotation in
3 sections of the cartoon to interpret the cartoonist’s message about
corruption and justice.
Time-bound: Write a 1-paragraph critical response evaluating the values
promoted in the cartoon within 15 minutes.
Activity 2: Pre-learning activity
Focus: Activate prior knowledge on commissions of inquiry and visual
literacy terms
Duration: 10 minutes
Skills: Listening, Speaking, Reading
Activity description:
I will project the cartoon title "THE MADLANGA COMMISSION" and asks:
What do you already know about commissions of inquiry in SA? Why are
they set up?Learners brainstorm in pairs.
, Quick recap using the board: Define denotation -literal meaning,
connotation - implied meaning. Also revise visual techniques: symbol,
metaphor, exaggeration, caricature, layout, text.
Show a 2-minute YouTube clip on "reading political cartoons". Justification:
This activates schema and gives learners the vocabulary needed to
unpack the cartoon. It makes the lesson learner-centred because learners
contribute their own knowledge first.
Activity 3: While learning activity - Preparation for semiotic analysis
Focus: Guided observation and labeling of visual elements
Duration: 20 minutes
Skills: Reading, Speaking, Writing
Activity description:
Teacher distributes printed copies of the cartoon. In groups of 4, I will give
learners 15 minutes to complete a worksheet:
- Column 1: List what you SEE - denotation. E.g. "3 commissioners at a
table, SA flag, money bag labeled R"
- Column 2: What could it MEAN? - connotation. E.g. "Money bag State
Capture & Corruption"
- Column 3: What technique is used? E.g. "Symbol, exaggeration"
Groups focus on 1 quadrant each: Top left "State Capture", Centre
"Commissioners", Bottom left "Erosion of Trust", Right "The Goal".
I circulate and scaffold by asking: "Why is the judge holding scales? Why is
the text 'NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW' at the bottom?"
Justification: Group work empowers learners to collaborate and construct
meaning together before whole-class discussion. It builds confidence for
semiotic analysis.
Activity 4: Visual analysis activity
Focus: Interpret the meaning and purpose of the cartoon’s visual elements
Duration: 25 minutes
Skills: Listening, Speaking, Reading, Writing
