Education Can End Systematic Oppression

1030 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Pedagogy of the oppressed reflection

Paolo Frieri’s 1968 work Pedagogy of the Oppressed is a comprehensive Marxist class analysis of the relationship between the oppressor and the oppressed, and while written nearly half a century ago in the context of poor and illiterate Brazilians, this dynamic is perhaps just as relevant today in the industrialized West. Frieri was particularly interested in the close affinity between education and liberation from oppression, but understood that certain educational philosophies lead to liberation’s dichotomous sibling – the upholding, and even strengthening, of the social institutions causing oppression. These ideas provide valuable insight into the ramifications of the growing expectation for all American students to attend college and explain how that very expectation may be eroding the foundational principles of higher education.

The intellectual and scientific Enlightenment of the eighteenth century produced two images conceptualizing what should be the proper approach to education; one was the student as an empty vessel which is “filled” by the teacher, the other as a seed, nourished and assisted in growing, but ultimately becoming its own unique flower. Frieri describes in great detail these two approaches as the “banking” model and as the “problem-posing" model. In the “banking” model, Frieri explains that “education becomes an act of depositing” where the teacher deposits information and the students “patiently receive, memorize, and repeat” (Frieri, 72). This model serves the oppressor by prescribing in the oppressed a false consciousness (ideas, attitudes, etc.) – the consciousness of the oppressor himself – further cementing the oppressor-oppressed dichotomy. Another word that concisely describes this approach to e...

... middle of paper ...

...Noam. “Noam Chomsky on Higher Education”. Genprogress.org. Samantha Schuyler, November 13, 2013. Web. March 3rd, 2014.

Freire, Paulo. Pedagogy of the Oppressed. New York: Herder and Herder, 1970. Print.

Giroux, Henry. "Higher Education Under Attack: An Interview With Henry A. Giroux." Interview by C. C. Johannsen. Truthout. Truth-out.org, 22 Apr. 2011. Web. 03 Mar. 2014. .

Gregg, Allan. "Henry Giroux On The Corporatization Of American Education." YouTube. Allan Gregg In Conversation, 30 Aug. 2012. Web. 03 Mar. 2014.

"State by State Data." Project on Student Debt:. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Mar. 2014.

Tobbell, Jane. "The Oppressive Curriculum: Viewing the National Curriculum through the Freirean Lens." Annual Review of Critical Psychology 2 (2000): 204-05. Web.

Show More
Related

  • Breaking Systems of Oppression

    857 Words  | 2 Pages

    Andrea Smith’s “Heteropatriarchy and the Three Pillars of White Supremacy” introduces an alternative framework for the organization of women and people of color (Smith 67). Such framework is non-singular, contrasting the previous which have proven to be limiting to these groups (Smith 67). Through the discussion of the three pillars which are separate, but interrelated and heteropatriarchy within society Smith provides a helpful starting point for organizers to break from systems of oppression and ultimately deconstruct White supremacy (Smith 73).

    Read More

  • In Defense Of A Liberal Education By Fareed Zakaria

    900 Words  | 2 Pages

    Have you ever read something and thought “What a bunch of crap”? Well that’s the reaction I had to reading Fareed Zakaria’s book, In Defense Of a Liberal Education. Over the course of the book, Zakaria makes the argument that attending college with the specific intention to get trained for a job is “Short sighted and needlessly limiting”. Zakaria also breaks down the differences between the United State’s education system with other countries across the globe. By attending college with the intention of receiving critical thinking skills and being able to express our ideas, rather than just going to train for a job, Zakaria believes that the average student would be much better off in the world after they graduate.

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Analysis Of Intellectuals And Democracy

    853 Words  | 2 Pages

    “Intellectuals and Democracy” by Mark Kingwell (2012) captures the essence of the commonality between higher education and philosophy and democracy. The author, who is a philosopher expresses his notion of the connection between the democratic system and that of the education system. Often, as the article expresses there is a preconception regarding the validation of careers promised with certain university degrees where other programs result in uncertainty or questioning from others. The use of rhetorical appeals used by the author throughout the article works towards building his article. I argue that through rhetorical appeals the author works his audience to grasp his personal stance of the education system as he attempts to persuade

    Read More

  • Peter Brooks Analysis

    1079 Words  | 3 Pages

    It should not be a surprise that many people believe that a college degree is a necessity in today’s world. We are taught to believe this at a young age. The average citizen will not question this statement due to how competitive the job market has become, yet does graduating college guarantee more success down the road? Peter Brooks is a scholar at Princeton University and publisher of an essay that questions the value of college. He obviously agrees that college can help securing a job for the future, but questions the humanities about the education. He uses other published works, the pursuit of freedom, and draws on universal arguments that pull in the reader to assume the rest of his essay has valid reasons.

    Read More

  • College: What It Was, Is, and Should Be by Andrew Delbanco

    1393 Words  | 3 Pages

    The right and privilege to higher education in today’s society teeters like the scales of justice. In reading Andrew Delbanco’s, “College: What It Was, Is, and Should Be, it is apparent that Delbanco believes that the main role of college is to accommodate that needs of all students in providing opportunities to discover individual passions and dreams while furthering and enhancing the economic strength of the nation. Additionally, Delbanco also views college as more than just a time to prepare for a job in the future but a way in which students and young adults can prepare for their future lives so they are meaningful and purposeful. Even more important is the role that college will play in helping and guiding students to learn how to accept alternate point of views and the importance that differing views play in a democratic society. With that said, the issue is not the importance that higher education plays in society, but exactly who should pay the costly price tag of higher education is a raging debate in all social classes, cultures, socioeconomic groups and races.

    Read More

  • The Educational System Of Haiti And The United States

    1149 Words  | 3 Pages

    Laurence, L (1967). Politics in Education. New York, NY: The Center for Applied Research in

    Read More

  • Working Class Students and Higher Education

    1320 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Tokarczyk’s essay, “Promises to Keep: Working Class Students and Higher Education,” she claims that working class students face both academic and institutional barriers in getting college degrees. According to Tokarczyk, working class students usually lack preparation for post-secondary education, which she categorizes as an “academic barrier” (85). Problems such as school policies that are not designed for working class students, peers who are not able to understand the situations that they have, and faculty m...

    Read More

  • Is College Worth the Expense?

    1203 Words  | 3 Pages

    Throughout the years, America has always debated whether education is needed- if it helps people succeed or not. The argument in the past was always over high school education, which is now mandatory. That decision has helped the US rise economically and industrially. Today, the US is in the middle of the same debate- this time, over college. Some, like David Leonhardt, a columnist for the business section of The New York Times, think a college education creates success in any job. Others, such as Christopher Beha, an author and assistant editor of Harper’s Magazine, believe that some college “education” (like that of for-profit schools) is a waste of time, and can even be harmful to students. Each stance on this argument has truth to it, and there is no simple answer to this rising issue in an ever changing nation full of unique people. Any final decision would affect the United States in all factions- especially economically and socially. However, despite the many arguments against college, there is overwhelming proof that college is good for all students, academically or not.

    Read More

  • Who Are You and What Are You Doing Here? Rhetorical Analysis

    1159 Words  | 3 Pages

    Studying a university degree is one of the biggest achievements of many individuals around the world. But, according to Mark Edmunson, a diploma in America does not mean necessarily studying and working hard. Getting a diploma in the United States implies managing with external factors that go in the opposite direction with the real purpose of education. The welcome speech that most of us listen to when we started college, is the initial prank used by the author to state the American education system is not converging in a well-shaped society. Relating events in a sarcastic way is the tone that the author uses to explain many of his arguments. Mark Edmunson uses emotional appeals to deliver an essay to the people that have attended College any time in their life or those who have been involved with the American education system.

    Read More

  • How Do We Justify Killing?

    1462 Words  | 3 Pages

    Muller, Gilbert H., ed. The McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues Across the Disciplines. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2008. Print.

    Read More

  • Going (to College) for Broke

    842 Words  | 2 Pages

    Cohen, Howard. "Who Should Pay For Higher Education?" The New York Times. The New York Times Company, 2003. Web. 7 Nov. 2013.

    Read More

  • Acts of Fraud

    1166 Words  | 3 Pages

    Kirp, David L. "The 'for profit' college an educational alternative." Current. 457 (Nov 2003): 25(6). Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Clark College - Cannell Library. 28 May. 2011

    Read More

  • The Funding for College Education

    1167 Words  | 3 Pages

    Carlson, Scott. “A President, Fighting For Every Nickel. (Cover Story).” Chronicle of Higher Education 56.30 2010: A1-A19. Academic Search Premier. Web. 11 May 2014.

    Read More

  • Pedagogy of the Oppressed Reflection by Paulo Freire

    975 Words  | 2 Pages

    The second chapter described the "banking" approach to education in which Freire suggested that students were considered empty bank accounts and that teachers were making deposits into them and receiving nothing back. The banking concept distinguishes two states. In the first, the educator cognizes a cognizable object and prepares a lesson. During the second, he expounds to his students about it. (67) Freire argued that the underclass could be empowered through literacy. He also pointed out that education could be used to create a passive and submissive citizen, but that it also has the potential to empower students by instilling in them a "critical consciousness." (45) Freire wanted the individual to form himself rather than be formed.

    Read More

  • The Purpose and Ideology of Education

    1539 Words  | 4 Pages

    Giroux, Henry A. Ideology, culture & the process of schooling. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1981. Print.

    Read More

More about Education Can End Systematic Oppression

Open Document