scholarly journals Capturing the Gramscian Project in Critical Pedagogy: Towards a Philosophy of Praxis in Education

2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 123-145
Author(s):  
Manojan K. P.
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Critical Pedagogy ◽  
Common Sense ◽  
Practical Knowledge ◽  
Paulo Freire ◽  
Antonio Gramsci ◽  
Human Consciousness ◽  
Emancipatory Education ◽  
Dominant Class ◽  
Human Liberation

As theory and praxis of emancipatory education, critical pedagogy has been profoundly influenced by the ideas of Antonio Gramsci on ‘ideology’, ‘hegemony’, ‘intellectuals’ and ‘human consciousness’. The works of Paulo Freire and his critical pedagogy are found analogous in many ways to Gramsci’s Marxism specifically in terms of the importance given to cultural action of subalterns. The imperative in critical pedagogy is to construct counter-hegemonic positions against the imperatives of the dominant class agenda of limiting subalterns from entering into the making of history. As a praxis it aims at unravelling the potentialities within subalterns through their wisdom, practical knowledge and everyday common sense and thereby transforming educational regimes as spaces of social justice and human liberation. This article attempts to capture the contours of critical pedagogy and explores how Gramsci’s Marxism has influenced the formation of critical pedagogy and its intellectual trajectories.

scholarly journals Don’t be fooled by ignorant schoolmasters: On the role of the teacher in emancipatory education

2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 52-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gert Biesta
Keyword(s):  
Critical Pedagogy ◽  
North American ◽  
Paulo Freire ◽  
Transfer Of Knowledge ◽  
Strong Argument ◽  
Emancipatory Education ◽  
Jacques Ranciere ◽  
Jacques Rancière ◽  
Educational Scholarship

The question I address in this article is how we might understand the role of the teacher in education that seeks to promote emancipation. I take up this question in conversation with German and North-American versions of critical pedagogy with, the works of Paulo Freire and with that of Jacques Rancière. I show that in each case we find not only a strong argument for emancipatory education but also a distinct view about the role of the teacher. My aim is partly to show the different ways in which the role of the teacher in emancipatory education can be conceived and to make clear how this role is related to the different understandings of emancipation and the dynamics of emancipatory education. The motivation for writing this article also stems from what I see as a rather problematic interpretation of the work of Rancière in recent educational scholarship, one where the key message of his 1991 book The Ignorant Schoolmaster is taken to be that anyone can learn without a teacher and that this alleged ‘freedom to learn’ would constitute emancipation. I challenge such a constructivist interpretation of Rancière’s work and argue that the key message of The Ignorant Schoolmaster is that emancipatory education is not a matter of transfer of knowledge from a teacher who knows to a student who does not (yet) know, but nonetheless is a process in which teachers and their teaching are indispensable. This will allow me to argue why and how teaching remains essential for emancipatory education and why we should therefore not be fooled into thinking that ignorant schoolmasters, because they have no knowledge to give, have nothing to teach and can be done away with.

scholarly journals Paulo Freire and Liberation Theology: The Christian Consciousness of Critical Pedagogy

2018 ◽  
Vol 94 (2) ◽  
pp. 246-264
Author(s):  
Peter McLaren ◽  
Petar Jandrić
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Critical Pedagogy ◽  
Liberation Theology ◽  
Paulo Freire ◽  
Social Justice Educator ◽  
Peter Mclaren

Paulo Freire und die Befreiungstheologie: Über ein christliches Verständnis von kritisch-revolutionärer PädagogikPeter McLaren, in den USA und weit darüber hinaus Gründungsfigur und Ikone einer kritisch-revolutionären Pädagogik, erläutert hier im Dialog mit Petar Jandrić indirekt seine eigene Position, indem er sie mit Paulo Freires Befreiungspädagogik und der südamerikanischen Befreiungstheologie konfrontiert und dabei seinen Ausgang von einem Marxschen Humanismus aufdeckt und sich selbst als einen »Marxist humanistic social justice educator« identifiziert.

scholarly journals Confronting repressive ideologies with critical pedagogy in science classrooms

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wilton Lodge
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Science Education ◽  
Critical Pedagogy ◽  
Science Teaching ◽  
Classroom Discourse ◽  
Science Learning ◽  
Educational Practice ◽  
Political Activity ◽  
Science Classrooms ◽  
Free Process

AbstractThe focus of this response to Arthur Galamba and Brian Matthews’s ‘Science education against the rise of fascist and authoritarian movements: towards the development of a Pedagogy for Democracy’ is to underpin a critical pedagogy that can be used as a counterbalancing force against repressive ideologies within science classrooms. Locating science education within the traditions of critical pedagogy allows us to interrogate some of the historical, theoretical, and practical contradictions that have challenged the field, and to consider science learning as part of a wider struggle for social justice in education. My analysis draws specifically on the intellectual ideas of Paulo Freire, whose work continues to influence issues of theoretical, political, and pedagogical importance. A leading social thinker in educational practice, Freire rejected the dominant hegemonic view that classroom discourse is a neutral and value-free process removed from the juncture of cultural, historical, social, and political contexts. Freire’s ideas offer several themes of relevance to this discussion, including his banking conception of education, dialog and conscientization, and teaching as a political activity. I attempt to show how these themes can be used to advance a more socially critical and democratic approach to science teaching.

Appeal to Philosophers

Philosophy ◽  
1940 ◽  
Vol 15 (60) ◽  
pp. 400-416
Author(s):  
C. E. M. Joad
Keyword(s):  
Classical Tradition ◽  
Human Activity ◽  
Common Sense ◽  
The State ◽  
Contemporary Society ◽  
Human Consciousness ◽  
Dual Purpose ◽  
Conduct Of Life ◽  
The Moment

I want in this paper to enter a protest against the preoccupations of many contemporary philosophers, and to put in a plea for a return to the classical tradition in philosophy. According to this tradition, philosophy is, or at least should be, concerned with the whole conduct of life. It has two main functions, to clarify the wisdom of common-sense people, and to increase it. To put it technically, philosophy, as traditionally conceived, is an activity of self-conscious beings which seeks, among other things, critically to examine the manifestations of human consciousness and the principles which guide human activity; to examine not disinterestedly, but in order to illuminate, to assist, and to reform. Philosophy has, therefore, the dual purpose of revealing truth and increasing virtue. One of the methods traditionally employed for achieving these two purposes consists in the attempt to discover those values which are ultimate in the sense that, while other things are desired for the sake oi them, they alone are desired for their own sakes, to uncover by a process of analysis the values which underlie the judgments commonly passed by contemporary society—as for example, in our own society, the values implied by the judgment that increase of efficiency in slaughter is desirable, especially if combined with a readiness to undertake it whenever the State to which one happens to belong deems the moment expedient for the mass slaughter of the citizens of some other State—and to show how the latter deviate from the former.

Impacts of Liberation Pedagogy: The Case of Workers' Education

1983 ◽  
Vol 165 (1) ◽  
pp. 113-129 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Hakken
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Paulo Freire ◽  
The United States ◽  
Antonio Gramsci ◽  
Social Psychological ◽  
Education Programs ◽  
Worker Education ◽  
The Social ◽  
Liberation Pedagogy ◽  
The Impact

Some perspectives with which to evaluate the impact of the pedagogy of liberation on worker education programs in England and the United States are suggested. The pedagogy of liberation is often associated with the work of Paulo Freire and occasionally with that of the Italian Marxist, Antonio Gramsci. After some initial discussion of the nature of liberation pedagogy, the problems involved in assessing its effectiveness, are discussed in reference to specific worker education programs in England and the United States. The analysis of workers' education involves discussion of the pedagogy which informs particular programs and the social psychological dilemmas which often face the worker/students involved in workers' education. The article concludes with a discussion of the implications of the research on workers' education for liberation pedagogy.

scholarly journals Beyond Hegemony: Elaborating on the Use of Gramscian Concepts in Critical Discourse Analysis for Political Studies

2017 ◽  
Vol 66 (2) ◽  
pp. 392-408 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Donoghue
Keyword(s):  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Social Science ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Common Sense ◽  
Social Groups ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Antonio Gramsci ◽  
Political Studies ◽  
Asymmetrical Power

The work of Antonio Gramsci is important for the theoretical underpinnings of critical discourse analysis. However, many scholars’ engagement with Gramsci’s work within critical discourse analysis remains surprisingly thin. This article seeks to highlight the detriment to critical discourse analysis of having only a surface engagement with Gramsci. It critically assesses how Gramscian concepts such as hegemony and ‘common sense’ are currently employed within critical discourse analysis and provides more detailed discussion on the import of these concepts for critical discourse analysis. The article also argues that introducing the Gramscian concepts of the war of position and spontaneous and normative grammars enables the further realisation of critical discourse analysis’ ambition to be an emancipatory tool in political and social science. In so doing, the article contributes to work on critical discourse analysis as a method in political studies, particularly concerning the role of discourse in reproducing and maintaining asymmetrical power relations between classes and social groups, and potential challenges to this.

scholarly journals Dialogic & Critical Pedagogies: An Interview with Ira Shor

2017 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ira Shor ◽  
Eugene Matusov ◽  
Ana Marjanovic-Shane ◽  
James Cresswell
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Critical Pedagogy ◽  
Critical Literacy ◽  
Paulo Freire ◽  
Central Feature ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Dialogic Pedagogy ◽  
Language And Thought ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Critical Pedagogies

In 2016, the Main Editors of Dialogic Pedagogy Journal issued a call for papers and contributions to a wide range of dialogic pedagogy scholars and practitioners. One of the scholars who responded to our call is famous American educator Ira Shor, a professor at the College of Staten Island, City University of New York. Shor has been influenced by Paulo Freire with whom he published, among other books, “A Pedagogy for Liberation” (1986), the very first “talking book” Freire did with a collaborator. His work in education is about empowering and liberating practice, which is why it has become a central feature of critical pedagogy.Shor’s work has touched on themes that resonate with Dialogic Pedagogy (DP). He emphasises the importance of students becoming empowered by ensuring that their experiences are brought to bear. We were excited when Shor responded to our call for papers with an interesting proposal: an interview that could be published in DPJ, and we enthusiastically accepted his offer. The DPJ Main Editors contacted the DPJ community members and asked them to submit questions for Ira. The result is an exciting in-depth interview with him that revolved around six topics: (1) Social Justice; (2) Dialogism; (3) Democratic Higher Education; (4) Critical Literacy versus Traditional Literacy; (5) Paulo Freire and Critical Pedagogy; and (6) Language and Thought. Following the interview, we reflect on complimentary themes and tensions that emerge between Shor’s approach to critical pedagogy and DP.

scholarly journals Pedagogy as Education to Active Thinking

2020 ◽  
Vol 54 ◽  
pp. e054009
Author(s):  
Gianluigi Segalerba ◽  
Oleg Yurievich Latyshev-Maysky
Keyword(s):  
Education System ◽  
John Dewey ◽  
Paulo Freire ◽  
Traditional Education ◽  
Common Point ◽  
The Self ◽  
Social Construct ◽  
Dominant Class ◽  
Traditional System ◽  
Political Foundations

   In our study, we analyse some reflections contained in the education thought of John Dewey, Paulo Freire and Peter McLaren. The three thinkers, with mutually different methods, have, in our opinion, as common point the intention to show that no education system is neutral in relation to the way in which societies are organised: all systems of education aim at the constitution of a particular kind of society through the formation of a corresponding mentality in the individuals. The ethical and political foundations of a society are mirrored in the education system: any reform of the society should, therefore, begin with the reform of the education system; furthermore, any reform of the society cannot be effective unless it is founded on the reform of education.  As regards Dewey’s observations, we concentrate our attention on his criticism of any education system based on the passivity of pupils and on the massification of students: Dewey steadily pleads for a system of education aiming at the individualisation of pupils. As regards Freire’s meditation, we point out Freire’s uncovering of the oppression exercised against the subaltern classes through the traditional education systems: the constant relegation of pupils of the oppressed classes to a condition of total passivity, which is the aim of the system of education described by Freire as the banking concept of education, destroys any sense and aspiration to autonomy in the pupils themselves. Self-depreciation of pupils is the result of the traditional system of education. McLaren points out that a correct system of education should have as its own aim the self-transformation and the empowerment of the students: educators ought to uncover the relations holding between knowledge, which is always a social construct, and the interests of the dominant class. 

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