A SYSTEMIC FUNCTIONAL MULTIMODAL DISCOURSE ANALYSIS (SF-MDA) OF ACADEMIC THEMATIC VISUALS ISSUED BY SCHOOL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT (SED) IN PUNJAB

Abstract

This research investigates Academic Thematic Visuals (ATVs) issued by the School Education Department (SED) in Punjab. Employing Halliday’s Systemic Functional Grammar within the framework of Multimodal Discourse Analysis as (SF-MDA), it explores how these visuals encode ideational, interpersonal, and textual meanings. It further analysis that how these meanings are visually represented through the elements such as angle, salience, positioning, gaze and roles. The data comprises visuals issued between January to May 2025, sourced from the VocalPakistan website, Education department’s official Facebook page, and relevant school’s WhatsApp groups. Findings reveal that how (SF-MDA) works to interpret the ethical, social, and moral values through these thematic visuals such as Speak the Truth, Water Conversation, Sabar, Good Touch Bad Touch, and Sharing is Caring. This study contributes to the field of Multimodal Discourse Analysis (MDA) by demonstrating how visual metafunctions can support educational policymakers in content development and help researchers improve the clarity and communicative impact of academic visuals