Transformational Learning - Freires Social-Emancipatory aproach

“Education either functions as an instrument which is used to facilitate integration of the younger generation into the logic of the present system and bring about conformity or it becomes the practice of freedom, the means by which men and women deal critically and creatively with reality and discover how to participate in the transformation of their world.” ― Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed

Hello to all! 

A few weeks ago I had to reflect on traditional educational theories. After reading thoroughly through pages and pages of research and theories of education, the one that matched my ideals the most was Paulo Freire's view. It is a bit radical, but none the less, what the world needs, specially in times of social, economic and political crisis, in which a fundamental change is necessary. 

Transformational or Transformative Learning theory is about change. It is a method of teaching which hopes to bring about dramatic, fundamental change in the way that we perceive and see ourselves, and the interactions with the world around us. (Merriam et. al. p 130) There are many lenses provided which explain Transformational learning, but I am going to Focus on Freire’s Social-Emancipatory view, for it is the one that I appreciate the most in terms of teaching about social change. His theory emerges from the context of poverty illiteracy and oppression (three relevant problems that the world faces today), and the idea that through personal empowerment and transformational learning these could be eradicated (p. 140).

Freire differentiates between two kinds of education: Banking education, which is teacher centered, and the role of the educator is to instill knowledge into his passive students, who take it all and believe everything he says. This kind rejects the idea of using dialogue, and it oppresses students. On the other side of the spectrum is Problem Posing education, in which the instructors job is to liberate his students by teaching them to use critical thinking to solve the problems that arise. This concept of liberation, brings about a process of conscientization, which in itself transforms the students from being oppressed to being free, thus being able to think critically, and for themselves.

I believe that the world is facing severe issues of oppression, added up to the economic and social problems that we are facing right now, and it all has to do because most of the population is not taught to think critically and for themselves. When a political or important figure tells us something, some choose to believe it, because of who that person is, without making any inquiries about the statement being true or false. 

Now if we were to educate in critical thinking, people would be able to make their own assumptions, and think for themselves separate from the political or economic assumptions. 

Although Freire’s stand is from a more political point of view, his ideas can be incorporated into transforming the perspectives of students in terms of their assumptions and beliefs about all aspects of life.

Daloz, L. A. (1986). Effective teaching and mentoring: Realizing the transformational power of adult learning experiences. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Freire, P. (2000) Pedagogy of the oppressed (20th anniversary ed.). New York: Continuum

Merriam, S., Caffarella, R., & Baumgartner, L. (2007) Learning in adulthood: A comprehensive guide (3rd ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass