Decode visual elements such as color, shape, line, texture and composition.

Understand the explicit and implicit meanings in images.

• Analysis

Examine how visual elements are used to convey messages.

Identify symbolism, visual metaphors and narratives.

• Contextualization

Understand the historical, cultural and social context of the production and consumption of images.

Recognize the influence of ideologies, values and prejudices on visual representations.

• Critique

Develop a critical attitude towards images, questioning their veracity, intentions and possible manipulation.

Evaluate the impact of images on society and individual perceptions.

• Empowerment: Enables people to resist visual manipulation and misleading advertising, promoting a more informed view of reality.

• Social Inclusion: Helps to recognize and question stereotypes, prejudices and discrimination represented visually, promoting a fairer and more equal society.

Main Work: "Pedagogy of the Oppressed" (1968)

Contributions: Freire is widely known for his work in literacy and critical pedagogy. His concept of conscientization (critical conscientização) is fundamental to critical visual literacy, as it involves the ability to perceive and question the social, political and cultural structures that influence the creation and interpretation of images. He advocates an education that promotes critical awareness and the ability to transform reality.

• John Berger

Main Work: "Ways of Seeing" (1972)

Contributions: Berger explores how images affect our perception and understanding of the world. He argues that seeing is a cultural activity and that the way we see things is influenced by historical and social context. Berger highlights the importance of questioning images and understanding the ideologies and values behind them, which is essential for critical visual literacy.

Many English teaching materials, such as textbooks, websites and digital media, use multimodal texts that combine words, images and other visual elements.

Teaching critical visual literacy helps students to interpret and analyze these texts more fully, understanding how images and words work together to create meaning.

• Developing Critical Skills

By analyzing images and visual texts in English, students develop critical skills that are transferable to analyzing written texts, such as identifying bias, understanding context and questioning the author's intention.

These skills are essential for critical reading of literature, opinion pieces, reports and other types of texts in English.

• Vocabulary and Expression

Discussing visual elements helps expand students' vocabulary in English, including terms related to colors, shapes, emotions, facial expressions and cultural contexts.

It promotes oral and written expression by asking students to describe images, explain interpretations and argue about implicit messages.

• Culture and Context

Images often reflect specific cultural contexts. Analyzing images in English can help students better understand English-speaking culture and the social and historical values represented visually.