Horton and Freire, "Education and Social Change" (199-226)
For this week's reading, I want all of you to address one of the two sub-titles for this section: "You have to bootleg education," or "The people begin to get their history into their hands, and then the role of education changes." Both of these are provocative sub-titles. Begin by identifying a key passage in one of the two sections in this chapter, and type that passage word-for-word into your discussion posting (be sure to include the page number of the passage). Then, explain how the passage you are quoting helps you to understand the sub-title for that section. Finally, end your posting by asking a question of your peers.
Return to the discussion and read all of your peers' postings; then respond to one of the questions asked by your peers. You must both post and respond to receive full credit for this discussion.
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ReplyDelete"Now the question is not for the new education to become a kind of indoctrination, it is as political as the other one was political, but now with another direction with another dream" (p. 218-219)
ReplyDeleteI chose "the people begin to get their history into their hands, and then the role of education changes". It is my opinion that If you have something personally invested you look at education differently and the role of education does change. This is similar to every four years when the push is made to get out and vote. This is a right that is given to us with our freedom. If you get out and vote and contribute to the outcome, you view the process differently than someone who is not going to contribute. I believe one reason someone would choose to not contribute to social outcome is fear. Paulo touched on this when he mentioned the fear of freedom. I would suggest using this fear as fuel. This would place the direction and dream within the imagination of the user of this model.
Paulo says, "Without freedom it's difficult to understand freedom....in fighting for freedom we discover how freedom is beautiful and difficult to be created" What are you prepared to do with your freedom in your space?
After thinking about the concept of formal and informal education seated in one room it brings creditability to the notion that all skills are transferrable. While the abilities may differ from person to person, the attitudes and skills needed are the same whether you are pursuing popular education or progressive education.
ReplyDeleteThe desire to make kids better, and the patience to allow them to make mistakes and correct them is a required skill. The ability to listen to what the students are saying and make changes accordingly is a skill that is also in high demand.
Well Tracy, It seems that you have very strong views on this topic! " the people begin to get their history into their hands, and then the role of education changes." I totally think this applies to situations in today's society. With a new president who has forever changed history by just being different and not only on a racial,or cultural level. But has a strong moral, ethical, and compassionate way of relating to the citizens of our country. Now aside from that there is also another passage where Paulo says" I hope that many of us are learning how difficult it is to make history, and how important it is to learn that we are being made by the history we make in the social process inside of history."(pg.216) Even though this was about the people in Brazil it was relevant to people everywhere who want to make a change socially and politically. Now the hard part is to come up with a system of getting all to understand without making them feel like it is being forced upon them. This is our job as teachers and leaders so that we can try to educate those who are willing and also educate those who are not willing with as little resistance as possible to ultimately achieve the goal of being an educator.
ReplyDeleteDoes this make sense to anyone? And what do you think it will take to give our youth the right education?
ReplyDeleteOn page 220 Paulo talks about how it's impossible for creation to take place without taking risks. A lot of people are afraid to take risks and are prohibited from exploring their full potential. He talks about how we have to be free to believe in risk. Paulo says, "Without freedom it's difficult to understand freedom. On the other hand, we fight for freedom to the extent that we don't have freedom, but in fighting for freedom we discover how freedom is beautiful and difficult to be created, but we have to believe that it's possible." I see people holding back on their goals and dreams all the time because they are afraid. It's hard to say what exactly holds them back? I think that many people in our country are consumed with fear. I think people are shamed and teased for trying new things. If your not confident that you are going to be the "best" at something, what's the point in trying? Now how can you even know weather you are good at something or not if you don't try? And the "best" only get to the top through practice, trial and error, right? Having grown up in America we know what it's like to be pumped full of fear through the media. I had a father that embedded fear in me as well. I missed out on a lot of experiences and explorations because I was afraid and now I'm kicking myself for it. I'd like to see kids be able to put down their guards in class so they are able to try new things and really get the chance to know themselves and others. Why be afraid of yourself? Chances are you've got a lot of good stuff inside just waiting to come out.
ReplyDeleteWhat are some ways of getting people to take risks and explore? Kids and/or adults?
With adults I think they really have to be coerced into trying something new or different and with children it is a little easier. I believe some type of incentive or reward is usually given as a method to get people to try new things. It's all about how you present things to them.
ReplyDeleteWell with the kids at work we try all different ways to introduce new things to them. One way that i think works best with young children like cornelius said, is giving them a reward for trying someting new, and also trying it with them so that they wont think that it is something scary or anything. And i agree with you cornelius i do think that it matters on how you present things to people. Like with my toddlers if i just put something in front of them they might just look at it or play with it the wrong way. So if i was to sit down and talk with them and show them how fun it would be then they might sit down and play with it.
ReplyDeleteCornelius,
ReplyDeleteI have no idea how we are going to pull this off. By "this" I mean be educators. How the hell are we going to make everyone understand. I plan to try my best and learn as I go. I think a few more years of school will help, but most important is getting out there and doing it. It's a work in progress, an art form we'll continually add to and try to make more beautiful with every stroke. I think you'll be great with the youth.
"The people begin to get their history into their hands, and then the role of education changes."
ReplyDeletePaulo states on page 218 "But what I want to say with the difficulties in education's corner of history, society nevertheless begins to change qualitatively and the people begin to experience that the time is now different from the other time."
I feel as though this quote helps me to understand the section because Paulo is able to recognize the power of change. Change is a beautiful thing, a thing which many people fear. I feel as though if people could understand that change is not only inevitable, it is also very necessary in helping any system (be it educational, or anything else). As far as education goes, change is pivotal; the ability to look at our history and learn from the mistakes we have made in the past can help assure that those mistakes (to the best of our abilities) will not happen again. And if they do occur again, then we now have a better understanding of how to correct them.
"You have to bootleg education"We concluded that reform within the system reinforced the system, or was co-opted (200).
ReplyDeleteThis is what I have been trying to say all along. When a system is inherently corrupt (racist in this case), there is no process possible in that system that can produce positive results. When the entire social dynamic is slanted towards a privileged class how can you convince those who receive undue benefit to forfeit that in the name of fairness? You have to do what you do without using their labels for it.
As it impossible to exist in a vacuum, can't really exist out of the system. As Freire said: "If we consider this in relation to the system, of course we discover that it is out of the subsystem of education but that it is inside of the system" (203). This is what I was saying in a different post about being able to see from only one viewpoint. Individual energy transfers (education in this case) are not seen as a closed system, so there is a discrepancy in how the relationships are viewed. How the Highlander program worked was not under the purview of 'education' but worked in a very concrete way to affect the larger system that controls the educational subsystem.
Horton talks about his experiences with organized labor in Brazil (212), and how they were organized as a syndicate that sounds to me like some oligarchical mafia-type worker exploitation set-up. When the system is corrupt to the core, the structures set up inside that system have to share that corruption to operate. This is the major paradox that I have been trying to transcend for this class. The one-foot-in-one-foot-out approach could slice me in half if the wall shot up through my crotch. I am not some libertarian who wants to live in a log cabin, and that's why I advocate revolution. The only way to fix a sick system is to destroy it and let the survivors come up with something better. Apply Hegel's dialectic to the 20th century: democracy vs. monarchy = socialism & fascism. fascism vs. socialism & democracy = communism & corporatism, which is currently the mess we are in. When this current dichotomy gets resolved however, we will see a new dichotomy for humanity to evolve out of!