Visual literacy is regarded as a core competence in the context of cultural education. Based on a recently developed European Framework for Visual Literacy we will develop an assessment instrument to measure visual literacy in sub-project BKKB (Bildkompetenz in der kulturen Bildung) Assessment. The empirical assessment of visual literacy among a sufficiently large sample of pupils and the investigation of its latent structure are essential preconditions for further empirical research in this area. Eye tracking is used to validate psychometric analyses and to compare empirical decisions of visual experts (teachers, designers) and novices (9^th graders) to a series of visual tasks addressing different sub-competencies.

In BKKB (Bildkompetenz in der kulturellen Bildung) we consider „Visual Literacy“ not only as qualification for further cultural education but also as result of educational processes. To learn more about the question whether and how instructional processes foster visual literacy we investigate in sub-project BKKB INSTRUCTION concepts of instructional quality known from research in other subjects (classroom management, cognitive activation, constructive climate) in an exemplary teaching unit in art instruction. Thereby, we want to identify factors that make art education successful from students’ point of view. Moreover, the study serves as a further validation of the assessment instrument concerning its implementation in real instructional settings. In cooperation with the European Network for Visual Literacy (ENViL) we will integrate the empirical findings in the underlying competence model and make the knowledge available for the educational practice.