What is Critical
Pedagogy?
A Summary of the Work of
Paulo Freire & His
Contemporaries
(Winton, 2006)
Paulo Freire - Background

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Freire was born in
Recife, Brazil.
He was born into a
middle class household.
His family was
impacted by the Great
Depression.
Freire soon knew what
it was like to go hungry.
(Stevens, 2002)
Av Rio Branco on Recife Island, with
a bit of Ponte Buarque de Macedo in
the distance, c. 1920s.
(Morrison, 2006)
Characteristics of the Great Depression



We have studied the Great
Depression at length this
year.
Jot down some social &
economic repercussions of
the Great Depression
across the globe.
How do the points you’ve
indicated tie into Freire’s
“hunger” both literally and
metaphorically?
Billboard in a town telling men who have been riding
the train carts across the country in search of work
not to stop in this town, since they can’t even employ
their own locals
(San Diego State University, 2006)
Paulo Freire on his Poverty


Freire stated that poverty and
hunger severely affected his
ability to learn.
This influenced his decision to
dedicate his life to improving the
lives of the poor:
“I didn't understand anything
because of my hunger. I wasn't
dumb. It wasn't lack of interest.
My social condition didn't allow
me to have an education.
Experience showed me once
again the relationship between
social class and knowledge"
(Freire).
(Stevens, 2002)
Child collecting garbage in Brazil for income
(Flickr, 2008)
Freire’s Career

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Freire's financial situation
eventually improved.
He enrolled at the
University of Recife, where
he earned a law degree.
He soon left the legal
profession choosing to
teach Portuguese in
Brazil’s high schools.
He later switched from
teaching high school to a
career in adult education.
(Stevens, 2002)
Faculty of Law, University of Recife
(Cabral de Moura, 2007)
Freire’s Career (Cont’d)




Freire completed his PhD
and worked in several
university and government
agencies in Brazil throughout
the 1960s.
He worked towards bringing
literacy programs to Brazil’s
poor.
In April of 1964, a military
coup brought all progressive
movements in Brazil to a halt.
Freire was imprisoned for 70
days and then exiled for his
"subversive" activities.
(Stevens, 2002)
c. 1960s
(Reason Foundation, 2008)
Jailed for being Progressive?




We’ve studied many people
throughout the course of the year who
were jailed for being progressive; for
wanting change in their societies.
Write down the names of a few
people who were incarcerated for
being “subversive”.
What connections can you make
about being progressive (i.e. wanting
change) and governmental status quo?
Why do governments feel the need to
silence people who want change?
Jail Cell
(IntLawGrrls, 2007)
Freire’s Career (Cont’d)


In 1968 Freire published his
most famous book, Pedagogy
of the Oppressed, where he
outlined the characteristics of
what he called Critical
Pedagogy.
Critical Pedagogy called for
people living under
conditions of oppression to
develop a new foundation for
learning.
(Stevens, 2002)
Book cover of Pedagogy of the
Oppressed, 30th Anniversary Ed.
(Amazon, 2008)
What is Oppression?





We use this word a great deal in our study of 20th
Century history.
What does oppression really mean? Write down
your own definition.
Research definitions of oppression on the Internet.
How do these definitions compare or contrast with
your own?
Name groups of people whom we have studied that
you feel were oppressed?
What oppressed these people? Who oppressed
them?
Critical Pedagogy



Critical Pedagogy was embraced by the
academic community and university scholars.
There has been a lot written about critical
pedagogy since Freire’s first text.
Important names in the field include:
 Kincheloe
 Macedo
 Wexler
 McLaren
 Shor
 Darder
 Giroux
 hooks
(Kincheloe, 2007)
(Duncan-Andrade & Morrell, 2008)
Kincheloe
(The Paulo & Nita Freire Project
for Critical Pedagogy, 2008)
Giroux
(University of Western Ontario, 2005)
What is Critical Pedagogy?


Critical pedagogy is a teaching approach
which attempts to help students question and
challenge domination, and the beliefs and
practices that dominate them.
It tries to help students become critically
conscious.
(Wikpedia, 2008)
How to be Critically Conscious?

According to Ira Shor (1992)
a student can be critically
conscious by:


Thinking, reading, writing, and
speaking while going beneath
the surface meaning
A student must go beyond:

Myths, clichés, received
wisdom, and mere opinions
Amazon, 2008
How to be Critically Conscious? (Cont’d)
Most importantly students must
understand the deep meaning, root
causes, social context,and personal
consequences of:











any action,
event,
object,
process,
organization,
experience,
text,
subject matter,
policy,
mass media,
or discourse.
Ira Shor & Paulo Freire
(Columbia University, 2008)
(Shor, 1992)
Characteristics of Critical Pedagogy



The following is a list of the goals and
methods that critical pedagogy tries to bring
to education.
The objective of this pedagogy (method of
education) is to empower students and help
them help themselves.
The aim is to liberate students from
oppression.
1. Anti-Colonial Education



Native populations need to
have their own education
systems.
They need to develop their
own culture.
Their education should not
simply be an extension of the
culture of their colonizer.
(Freire, 1968)
CLASS EXAMPLE:
Map of Brazil issued by the Portuguese
explorers in 1519.
(Wikipedia, 2008)
2. The Role of Indigenous Knowledge




The knowledge of indigenous and subjugated
peoples (people forced to submit to the will of
another group) is very important.
When oppressed people learn about their own
culture, history, medicinal practices, religion,
heritage, etc., this can have a transformative effect
on their lives and lead to their own empowerment.
Indigenous knowledge is equally important for
people in the West who have ignored it in favour
of Western knowledge.
There is much to be learnt from the knowledge of
indigenous peoples across the globe.
(Kincheloe, 2007)
CLASS EXAMPLE
Indigenous medical practitioners
known as sesayas in Myanmar cure
diseases using natural elements
throughout the country (AllMyanmar,
2008).
3. Identifying Sources of Power



Students must be able to analyze competing power
interests between groups and individuals within a
society.
They must be able to identify who gains and who
loses in specific situations.
They must be made aware that privileged groups
often have an interest in supporting the status quo to
protect their advantages.
(Kincheloe, 2007)
CLASS EXAMPLE
4. Political Nature of Education




All education is political.
Teachers and students must be
made aware of the “politics” that
surround education.
The way students are taught and
what they are taught serves a
political agenda.
Teachers, themselves, have
political notions, they bring into
the classroom.
(Kincheloe, 2008)
CLASS EXAMPLE:
President Bush visiting the Emma E. Booker
Elementary School in Sarasota on the morning of
9/11 promoting his “Reading First” educational
program (Lexidiem, 2006)
5. Understanding the Politics of
Knowledge

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Students must understand that knowledge itself is political.
Understanding the “power” of knowlegde is crucial.
Many educational instiutions use their “power” to keep the
privileged on top and the underprivileged on the bottom.
What we learn in schools/universities is usually “validated"
scientific knowledge.
The problem?


Often the people who produced this “scientific” knowledge are the
people in positions of power who dominate over oppressed peoples!
How much of the knowledge thay you have learnt in school is
Western and written by dead, white males?
(Kincheloe, 2008)
CLASS EXAMPLE
6. Justice & Equality in Education

A social and
educational vision of
justice and equality
should be the basis of
all education
(Kincheloe, 2008)
CLASS EXAMPLE:
School children in Soweto, South Africa (1976)
rioting against government’s plans to introduce
Afrikaans as the official language of instruction
(NPR, 2008).
7. The Rejection of Economic
Determinism

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Critical Pedagogy understands
that economic factors alone do
not predetermine who has power
and who does not.
Students must be made to realize
that people are also oppressed
because of issues of:

race,

class,

gender,

sexuality,

religion,

and physical ability
(Kincheloe, 2008)
CLASS EXAMPLE
A rally in protest of the desegregation of
Little Rock Central High at the state
capitol, August 20, 1959 (McElrath,
2008).
8. Goal of Schooling is to Lessen Human
Suffering

The alleviation of
oppression and human
suffering is a key
aspect of the purpose
of education
(Kincheloe, 2008)
CLASS EXAMPLE:
A group of women who have just completed 3 months
at a brand-new literacy program one hour outside of
Kano. The program was started by local pastors, who
also serve as the teachers. The NGO Hands at Work is
now partnering with them to assist in any way
possible (Hardie, 2007).
9. End of “Banking System” of Education
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Students should not be viewed
as an empty “account” to be
filled in by the teacher.
Teachers should know that
students have life experiences
and their own knowledge that
is key in shaping their
education and learning.
Good schools do not blame
students for their failures or
strip students of the
knowledges they bring to the
classroom.
(Freire, 1968) (Kincheloe, 2008)
CLASS EXAMPLE:
A traditional classroom scene from
1935 (Biz/Ed, 2008)
10. Change in Relationship between
Student and Teacher


A deep respect shoud exist
between teacher and student.
We should think in terms of
teacher-student and studentteacher - that is:


a teacher who learns and
a learner who teaches
(Freire, 1968)
CLASS EXAMPLE:
Teacher & Student in
Louisiana (LSU College
of Education, 2006)
11. Teachers as Researchers


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The professionalism of
teachers must be respected.
Part of the role of any
educator involves becoming a
scholar and a researcher.
It is vital to know your
students; i.e. their culture,
knowledge base, language,
etc.
Teachers must become
“warrior intellectuals”, people
who know their students and
their backgrounds and who
are willing to fight for them
(Kincheloe, 2008)
CLASS EXAMPLE
A CEP teacher and a group of 8th grade
students perform at their year-end poetry
slam in June 2006 (The Arts &
Spirituality Centre, 2006).
12. Education Must Promote
Emancipation & Intellectual Growth

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Education must both promote freedom
(emancipation) and the changes that
come with it.
Education must also allow knowledge,
reasoning and understanding (i.e.
intellect) to grow.
These two goals should never be in
conflict, they should always be in sync.
Those who seek freedom
(emancipation) attempt to gain the
power to control their own lives in unity
with a community that seeks justice.
Critical pedagogy’s role is to expose the
forces that prevent individuals and
groups from making the decisions that
will affect their lives.
(Kincheloe, 2008)
The Journal of Urban Mathematics Education (JUME)
is a peer-reviewed, open-access, academic journal
published twice a year. The mission of JUME is to foster
a transformative global academic space in mathematics
that embraces critical research, emancipatory pedagogy,
and scholarship of engagement in urban communities
(JUME, 2008).
CLASS EXAMPLE
13. Education Meeting the Needs of
New Colonialism


Education often reflects the
interests and needs of new
modes of colonialism and
empire, i.e. Globalization,
TNCs, U.S. foreign
domination….
Such dynamics must be
exposed, understood, and
acted upon.
(Kincheloe, 2008)
CLASS EXAMPLE
(Koulopoulos, 2006)
BY THE WAY…you can actually outsource your homework to
India! Read this link http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/content/article/2006/05/14/AR2006051401139.html
14. A Cycle of Critical Praxis Must
be Established

Praxis is a problem-solving method.
(Duncan-Andrade & Morrell, 2008)
CLASS
EXAMPLE
15. The Idea of Hegemony

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Hegemony is a complex notion….
Groups/people who have dominant power do not
always get this power through physical force.
They gain this power through social and psychological
attempts to win people’s consent.
This is often done by dominating culture, i.e.
influencing media, schools, family, the Church.
This is hegemony.
(Kincheloe, 2007)
Example: Hitler slowly won over the consent of the German
people; he did not take over power by force. He created
organizations that improved working conditions in
factories, he developed loan programs for families who
wanted to go on vacation, he established youth groups
to indoctrinate the young, etc. As we learnt his
manipulation of the German people won them over, i.e.
hegemony.
Hitler posing with a member of
the Hitler Youth (Zigfeld,
2007).
Critical Pedagogy – Final Thoughts
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

One of the key objectives of critical pedagogy is to
allow students to gain the necessary social skills to
allow them to actively participate in a
transformed & inclusive democratic community.
When you can identify the sources of power,
recognize your own position in relation to power and
understand the political nature of what you learn you
can develop your own social actions.
Critical pedagogy seeks to give those who have been
excluded from power the right and ability to have an
input into civic life.
(Kincheloe, 2007)
Works Cited
AllMyanmar. (2008). Traditional Medicine Myanmar. Retrieved July 22, 2008,
from http://www.allmyanmar.com/new%20allmyanmar.com/
Traditional%20Indigenous%20Medicine%20Myanmar%20Burma.htm
Amazon. (2008). Empowering Education – Book Cover. Retrieved July 18,
2008, from http://www.amazon.com/Empowering-Education-CriticalTeaching-Social/dp/0226753573
Amazon. (2008). Pedagogy of the Oppressed – Book Cover. Retrieved July
18, 2008, from www.amazon.com/.../dp/book-citations/0826412769
Biz/Ed. (2008). A traditional classroom scene from 1935. Retrieved July 21,
2008, from http://www.bized.co.uk/current/pbl/educator.htm
Works Cited (Cont’d)
Columbia University. (2008). Photo of Paulo Freire & Ira Shor. Retrieved
July 21, 2008, from http://www.columbia.edu/itc/tc/parker/adlearnville/
transformativelearning/freire.html
Duncan-Andrade, Jeffrey M.R. & Morrell, Ernest. (2008). The Art of Critical
Pedagogy: Possibilities for Moving from Theory to Practice in Urban Schools.
New York: Peter Lang.
Flickr. (2008). The Rubbish Tip – IX: Hazardous Child Labour in Brazil (Set).
Retrieved July 21, 2008, from http://flickr.com/photos/beija-flor/3828815/
JUME. (2008). Journal of Urban Mathematics Education. Retrieved July 21,
2008, from http://ed-osprey.gsu.edu/ojs/index.php/JUME/index
Works Cited (Cont’d)
Hardie, Ginna. (2007). Nigeria Dreamin'... Photos of Literacy School, Kano.
Retrieved July 21, 2008, from http://ginnahelen.blogspot.com/2007/06/nigeriadreamin-photos-of-literacy.html
IntLawGrrls – Voices on International Law, Policy, Practice. (2007). Photo of
a Prison. Retrieved July 21, 2008, from http://intlawgrrls.blogspot.
com/2007_08_01_archive.html
Kincheloe, Joe L. (2007). Critical Pedagogy in the Twenty-First Century:
Evolution for Survival. In Peter McLaren & Joe L. Kincheloe (Eds.), Critical
Pedagogy: Where Are We Now? (pp. 9-42). New York: Peter Lang.
Kincheloe, Joe. (2008). Critical Pedagogy Primer, 2nd Ed. New York: Peter
Lang.
Works Cited (Cont’d)
Koulopoulos, Tom. (2006). Outsourcing Education Cartoon. Retrieved July
21, 2008, from http://www.theinnovationzone.com/page/2/.
Lexidiem. (2006). President Bush visiting the Emma E. Booker Elementary
School in Sarasota. Retrieved July 21, 2008, from
http://lexidiem.blogspot.com/2006/09/bush-administration-f-for-reading.html
LSU College of Education. (2006). Photo of Student & Teacher. Retrieved
July 21, 2008, from http://coe.ednet.lsu.edu/coe/highlights/spring_2007/
highland_elementary.html
Marcio, Cabral de Moura. (2007). Faculdade de Direito do Recife / Recife Law
School. Retrieved July 18, 2008, from http://flickr.com/photos/mcdemoura/
466733184/
Works Cited (Cont’d)
McElrath, Jessica. (2008). School Desegregation - Central High. Retrieved
July 21, 2008, from http://afroamhistory.about.com/od/schoolintegration
/ig/School-Integration/Central-High.--47.htm
Morrison, Allen. (2006). The Tramways of
Recife, Pernambuco State, Brazil. Retrieved July 18, 2008, from www.
tramz.com/br/re/re22n.jpg
NPR. (2008). School Children Rioting in Soweto. Retrieved July 21, 2008,
from http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5489490
Reason Foundation. (2008). A Favela in Rio de Janeiro. Retrieved July 18,
2008, from http://www.faculty.fairfield.edu/faculty/hodgson/
Courses/so11/population/RioFavela.jpg
Works Cited (Cont’d)
San Diego State University. (2006). Photo of Jobless Men During Great
Depression. Retrieved July 21, 2008, from http://theatre.sdsu.edu/html/events/
2006-2007Season/grapes_of_wrath/dramaturg-grapes.html
Shor, Ira. (1992). Empowering Education. Chicago: University of Chicago
Press.
Stevens, Christy. (2002). Critical Pedagogy on the Web. Retrieved July 18,
2008, from http://mingo.info-science.uiowa.edu/~stevens/critped/page1.htm
The Arts & Spirituality Center. (2006). Arts & Spirituality Center Helps Teens
at Community Education Partners to Make Connections Between Rap and
Poetry. Retrieved July 18, 2008, from http://news.artsandspirituality.org/
index.php?id=78
Works Cited (Cont’d)
The Paulo & Nita Freire Project for Critical Pedagogy. (2008). Photo of Joe
Kincheloe. Retrieved July 21, 2008, from http://freire.education.mcgill.ca/
users/joe-kincheloe
University of Western Ontario. (2005). Photo of Henry Giroux. Retrieved
July 21, 2008 from, http://www.fedcan.ca/congress2005/programs/5_29.htm
Paley, Amit R. (2006). Homework Help, From a World Away. Retrieved July
21, 2008 from, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/
article/2006/05/14/AR2006051401139.html
Wikipedia. (2008). Map of Brazil. Retrieved July 18, 2008, from http://en.
wikipedia.org/wiki/Brazil
Works Cited (Cont’d)
Winton, Ezra. (2006). Photograph of Paulo Freire. Retrieved July 18, 2008,
from http://www.ezrawinton.com/
Zigfeld, Kim. (2007). Photograph of Hitler Youth. Retrieved July 22, 2008,
from http://www.publiuspundit.com/2007/08/russias_nashi_youth_cult
_on_th.php