The Practical Application of Freire’s Educative Philosophy to Reality

I have to say that I really enjoyed this reading. I thought that it was a very accurate description of the education process, and society’s impact upon education. I feel like I always do the worst in the classes where I have no interest in them, or merely just memorize information and then regurgitate it for the exam. I really think that narrative education is detrimental to the development of the individual, stunting creative power and allowing for the formation of a warped view of reality, as it boxes the student into a certain way of thinking and is more conducive towards memorization rather than actual learning and retention of knowledge.

I also really liked Freire’s theory of problem-posing education. I thought the idea of teachers and students simultaneously playing each others roles to be absolutely fascinating. I’ve always subscribed to the idea that people never stop learning, so I like the idea of the implementation of an education system where the teacher and students learn from each other, forming a cyclical relationship where ideas are posed and analyzed by both parties, and then conclusions shared with each other so as to enlarge their perspectives and knowledge base.

However, I am confused as to exactly how Freire wants to implement this program. I would assume that most of this system of education would be based upon discussion sections or classes founded upon student-participation. We have plenty of classes like that at Emory, but I do not think that a true student-teacher relationship has been formed, just based off of my experience in discussion sections and courses heavily dependent on student-participation. I have found that most students just respond because they feel like they have to, and the teachers have to ask question after question in order to force information out of them. How exactly does Freire hope to make this relationship between the student and teacher a reality? What methods does he want the teacher to implement in the classroom in order to achieve this goal of a teacher-student and student-teacher learning process?

In conclusion, in my opinion, Freire suggested a great system of education, and performed a very comprehensive and intelligent analysis of society and its impact upon education; however, I feel that he lacked a description of how to practically apply his theory to reality.