Kincheloe on Critical Pedagogy

In today’s society, education has shifted the way in how one thinks, making a basis were they acquire everyone in a classroom to grasp the knowledge being presented to them at the same pace. Those that are unsuccessful to comprehend in the way that was instructed to them are viewed upon as the most needed and deficient. Having a structured way in how one should apprehend certain information, sets barriers in the process of thinking. It prevents the mind to think of other solutions, and to stick to the certain idea.

The poem “Students” by Tom Wayman, shows four different learning styles: The Vaccination Theory of Education, The Dipstick Theory of Education, The Easy Listener Theory of Learning, and The Kung Fu Theory of Education. Wayman is a teacher that has noticed that every person devolves into one of these different learning styles. The four different theory of education are used every day even if we do not know.

Critical pedagogy is a philosophy that aims to foster more than just dialogue between the educators and students. It encourages “exploration, to help students move through the process of discovery by talking with them, asking questions and generally keeping up the momentum of exploration” (Elmborg, 2002, p. 458). This then effectively resolves the issue of a stagnant pedagogy, one that does not keep up with the times and needs of the students. Additionally, critical pedagogy serves to place some, or perhaps a lot of autonomy on the students’ part, attributing the means to the realization potential to them as well as the educators. As such, the only way for the educator to come to a better understanding of their students’, as well as their own

“The goal of education is not to increase the amount of knowledge but to create the possibilities for a child to invent and discover, to create men who are capable of doing new things” (Jean Piaget).

The author compares today’s school system to that of the past, which concerned itself with teaching students,

Most people form many of their friendships at school, but even outside of friends, individuals’ education alters their mentalities. Without a doubt, actions like conquering challenging subject matter and overcoming academic struggles cause some parts of this educational effect, but one’s teachers have some of the greatest influence in education. The instructor teaches with a personal worldview, one which will incidentally impact the students. For example, some private schools teach the religion of Christianity, where a living God designed the universe, while public schools are required to teach the religion of evolution, where everything exists due to a chance clash of lifeless chemicals. This disparity in beliefs about the universe’s origin fosters strongly opposing ideas about topics such as morals and the meaning of life that are fundamental to how a person decides to handle any given situation. The teacher can also inspire a growth or a fixed mindset in students. Psychology professor Carol Dweck invented this idea of

The education of children has existed since the beginning of time as parents have taught and molded their children into the young adults they desired them to be. Initial training of children was not in a formal setting, although history would see numerous settings, purposes, and methodological changes. Philosophies of education have also changed through the years as various voices have seemed to grasp the purpose of educating the next generation, thus laying out objectives to reach those goals of teaching children.

Yet even with these realizations that delve into the deeper meaning of education, modern education is still calling for simple measurable outcomes and continues to be geared towards specific employment ideas. This model of education is blatantly inadequate though. Many students today will end up holding jobs not yet invented in fields not yet discovered, so the teaching of answers to today’s questions is utterly useless. Albert Einstein once said, “Education is not the learning of facts, but the training of the mind to think.” and this statement reigns true throughout time. To continue academic success, the education system needs to impart a mastery of one’s own mind that allows students to not only answer current questions but also to pose questions that will shape the future world.

This “flawed” concept in education today is the oppressive “depositing” of information (banking education) by teachers to students. “Banking education (for obvious reasons) attempts, by mythicizing reality, to conceal certain facts which explain the way people exist in the world…” (p.224) The “banking concept” is an act that hinders the intellectual growth of students by turning them into “receptors” and “collectors” of information that have no true connection to their lives. The “banking concept” is essentially turning humans into objects. “Banking education inhibits creativity and domesticates (although it cannot completely destroy) the intentionality of consciousness by isolating consciousness from the world, thereby denying people their ontological and historical vocation of becoming more fully human.” (p.224) This type of education

Instead of absorbing knowledge, students are left gazing through their teachers’ eyes as information goes in one ear and out the other. The best students are the ones who memorize for tests, yet they do not understand what it is they are learning or how it can relate to the world. In school systems, the job of the educator “is to regulate the way the world “enters into” the students” (Freire 4). The teacher manipulates the way a student learns by allowing only certain information to be released. Only supportive statement for the “banking” concept is that an “educated individual is the adapted person, because she or he is better “fit” for the world” (Freire 4).

What do students obtain through education? Freire in his essay ‘The Banking Concept of Education’ argues that students gain useless and meaningless knowledge through education, and I agree with Freire because education has become an act of depositing meaningless information into students. Freire believes the current educational system is flawed due to the “Banking Concept”, which Freire describes as, “an act of depositing, in which the students are the depositories and the teacher is the depositor”(Freire 72). Freire implies that teachers are only telling students what to know rather than conversting with them, which explains why Freire insists that “education is suffering from narration

Technically education consists of well-defined segments preliminary starting from formal/ professional education and in an ideal world it never ends. As Sydney J. Harris American journalist Quotes “The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows”. Education brings about the change in physical, mental and social development of an individual develops insight and beliefs about the purpose of education, conveys strength to one's sentiments, and widens the perceptions and leading to a healthier attitude of viewing at realism. In the words of Bill Beattie, one of the famous authors and writers “The aim of education should be to teach us rather how to think, than what to think - rather to improve our minds, so as to enable us to think for ourselves, than to load the memory with thoughts of other men.” Education is answerable for the enhancement of a cultured civilization and makes individuals of society self-sufficient. One of the views about education is that education supports at creating good teachers. Today is the world where we are passing through a great changeover. The old ways of teaching learning process is found to be obsolete. A superior prospect of psychological belief is being truly required. In the above statement prospective it is important to have ethical standards setup for education in order to channelize the best possible knowledge to the students,

Education can be defined as a learning process in which a student and a teacher are involved. The work of the teacher is to pass on the message to the student while the student understands and applies what has been taught. It is also considered as a process of developing skills, knowledge and character of an individual. Education, whether formal or informal, has a function both to the individual and the society, these functions are either manifest or latent. There is a distinction between the manifest and latent functions in that the manifest functions are those that are intended whereas the latter are the unintended functions (Douglas, 2003).

Amongst the many topics debated in education circles, it is easy to forget the choice of what we teach and why is of paramount importance. Critical reflection on the relevance of educational philosophers, both past and present, is essential to understanding curriculum choices. With regard to these statements, I wish to apply to this program as a result of a strong professional and personal interest in philosophers of education. More specifically, gaining a deeper understanding of behavioral and functional psychology in education can enhance my current work in many ways. The theories of philosopher’s such as William James have direct implications in my work. For example, by considering the role of acquisition and association of ideas in teaching and learning, I would be broadening my overall knowledge. Additionally, understanding the impact of interest, attention and memory on learning are key components that would enhance my teaching abilities and benefit my students.

“The goal of education is not to increase the amount of knowledge but to create the possibilities for a child to invent and discover, to create men who are capable of doing new things,” stated by Jean Piaget. Education serves many purposes; it helps a child open their eyes to the world, it provides curiosity and determination for a young adult, and it can provide middle age adults and elders with a spark of belonging and hope. To be able to achieve these purposes, the process of education must start at a young age. Singing the ABC’s to an infant, reading to a toddler, encouraging writing and math skills are a few steps towards all the possibilities a person could have in life.