Freire And Oppression

Paulo Freire is an author who poses questions and arguments that challenge everything that his readers think and know. “The Banking Concept of Education” from Pedagogy of the Oppressed poses the question about the education system and how teachers are narrators and students are recorders. In his essay he discusses how the students – who he refers to as containers – receive their information from teachers. However, the teachers never communicate with their subordinates. The idea of “banking” suggests that students are only receiving, memorizing and receiving facts from the “depositor” which made the students “depositories.” The main ideas drawn from this article are related to education, knowledge and communication.

Freire begins Chapter 2 of Pedagogy of the Oppressed by stating his interpretation of the educational system between teacher and student, focusing primarily on the “banking” system, which is exceptionally biased due to oppressive teachers who direct their own misguided inquiries upon their oppressed students. Freire continues on by maintaining “knowledge is a gift bestowed by those

Freire shifts his focus to talk about the current consciousness state of the students. The consciousness of the students is the key to keeping them oppressed, by being able to change their consciousness it makes the students easier to control.

Consciousness raising is an educational outcome of empowerment, that has been tapped to combat oppression and injustice, as it enables the individual to understand the source of their powerlessness or oppression and to see that the situation is ‘not their fault’. “Critical consciousness is the key ingredient in realizing empowerment” (Carr, 2003, p. 15, referring to Freire). That is, arriving at critical consciousness enables people to act, including a possible re-creation of their identity in relation to their environment, and to reassess their relationships within that environment, which, in turn, can enable positive social change — Conscientization, or raised consciousness, is thus a mobilising force (Carr, 2003, p. 15).

In societies of past, the oppressor and oppressed are in constant opposition to each other. This fight can be obvious or sublime. However, every time the conflict ends in either a revolutionary reconstruction of society or common ruin.

The oppressor is dominant, powerful, and unified. The oppressor is disadvantaged, weak, and divided. Often times in the healthcare system, the oppressor appears to be the for-profit corporations, investors, and government to name a few. Similarly on the other end of the spectrum, the oppressed are regularly identified as the poor, minorities, and those that are underprivileged. Sadly, these descriptors are typically accurate in the United States and the world abroad. Freire identifies characteristics of the oppressor as selfish, manipulative of others, abusive of power, and fails to recognize others as humans. He describes characteristics of the oppressed as denying the self, prevented from being authentic, and as being exploited and manipulated without realization (Butts & Rich,

Paulo Freire stresses in chapter one, that people towards each other, and towards themselves, should exhibit the abilities of humanity. These abilities include empathy, liberty, and honesty. Freire states that humanization can only be recognized once dehumanization is recognized- when the humanity of a person is stripped away from them, causing them to be oppressed. Freire is able to identify with the oppressors, however, in knowing that they themselves are dehumanized through an unfair stability that provokes violence in oppressors, (44). In this chapter, it is argued that the oppressed do not do anything to change the situation they are in and that in order for humanity to be restored for both the oppressors and the oppressed, it is necessary for the oppressed to transform their situation, while not developing the ways of the oppressor.

Freire then introduces problem-posing concept, where the portrayal of students and teachers become less structured and both take part in interactions, to learn from one another. He states, “Knowledge emerges only through invention and re-invention, through the restless, impatient, continuing, hopeful inquiry human beings pursue in the world, with the world, and with each other” (1). In other words, Freire believes that the true understandings of what they're are being taught can only be molded through conversation, questioning, and sharing each other’s

The relationship between the teacher and the student can be associated with two different methods of learning. Paulo Freire suggests the “The ‘Banking’ Concept of Education”, in which the teacher “fills the account” of the student with information and knowledge they have (318). Freire also explains the concept of “problem posing” learning that contradicts the “banking” concept. This way helps the student become more involved with their education, and they are able to become a more well-rounded student. But Freire ignores to add any supporting detail to his points based on how a student feels about each method of education. Determining the best way of an education is all

The greatest thing about humans is that they have the ability to think. Thinking is what differs people from each other and makes people who they are. Freire understands the importance of thinking and wants to start a discussion on the school systems attempt to restrict thinking. This is what he tries to do in his article, something that he does pretty well. He believes the school system solely cares about facts and numbers. The teachers feed their students information and expect them to memorize it, and spit it back on paper. “The reason the banking system continues to thrive is to serve the purpose of the authority, whose peace of mind rests on how well the oppressed fit in the world created by the oppressors, and how little they question it (Freire, page 219). Educators have to understand that the classroom is a leveled playing field, teaching and learning simultaneously through discussions with each other.

Many believed that it was the will of God, or a higher power, for them to be in their place in society (Flanagan, 2005). The oppressed feel as they are worthless, and dependent on the oppressors. Freire’s pedagogy opposed the views of his time. He wanted elevate the oppressed by educating them, allowing them to see themselves as deserving humans, and help them discover alternatives the dire situations they were accustomed to (Flanagan,

In Pedagogy of the Oppressed Paulo Freire mentions the teacher-student contradiction. The contradiction is when students are controlled by teachers. The teachers have the authority over the students, which puts the students in a position that lacks freedom to experience their identity as humans. This contradiction exists due to the banking concept of education. Freire states that the banking concept encourages the contradiction between teachers and students. The banking concept rejects students as individuals and sees them as objects. As a result of the rejection as individuals, students are unable to speak or act upon their own

Only in the end of his essay does Freire focus more on his own system, and explain its privileges without resorting to the faults of the currents system, but even then he uses the latter tactic several times. The essay ends on a political note, calling the new revolutionaries to realize what the name they call themselves means, and to change the current ways not only on the outside, as they have done before, but also internally to make radical changes to their philosophy and their ideas about education. This concluding device stirs up some doubts as to the point of the whole essay. It might seem from the author’s concluding point that the underlying purpose of the essay was not to expand on the more beneficial ways of education, but to criticize the ways of political leaders in his, or some other country. Nevertheless, the rest of the essay shows little evidence of such a plot, and this point is at best marginal.

Paulo Freire was a Brazilian educator and philosopher whose distinctive visions have influenced the perception of people towards traditional education. In his essay “The ‘Banking’ Concept of Education”, Paulo criticizes the current educational approaches and teaching methods, comparing the depositing of information into the students to the act of depositing money into a bank account, and offers another positive way of teaching as an alternative to such approaches. Although Freire could convince his audience of his opinions using his own way, his hypocritical descriptions of the points he talked about have failed him to reach a certain level of credibility in his essay.

John Dewey once said “Education is not preparation for life; Education is life itself." Meaning that learning is an active process that should occur to enhance one 's living and understanding thereof. When one only views education as a temporary thing they miss the big picture , and fail to grasp the what life truly is. Paulo Freire believes in having the opportunity to discover for oneself all that the world has to offer with the slight guidance from a teacher. He also says that “Education must begin with the solution of the teacher-student contradiction, by recoiling the poles of the contradiction so that both are simultaneously teachers and students.” Freire introduces the idea that we can and should all learn from each other, that no one person is ever higher in the world of education. We all have a unique perspective and take on things, and teachers should allow us to discover and interpret for ourselves.