Getting Started

Critical Pedagogy in the classroom is anything but the banking method Freire was against.  The banking system is an education system  where students are only receiving information and knowledge by the teacher. The students are not active participates instead the teacher talks while the students listen. This type of method resembles the behaviorist model and even direct teaching.

One approach of implementing critical pedagogy in the classroom  is by implementing a problem-posing education.  This type of learning encourages critical learning. The role of the educator is to create a collaborative environment with the students by both imparting knowledge.  Students are engaged in dialogue with the teacher as the educator "re-forms  his/her reflections in the reflections of his students" (Freire).

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What is the difference between problem solving and problem-posing?  A constructivist classroom the teacher acts as a facilitator as students solve a problem either in groups or in pairs. In a problem-posing classroom the teacher may introduce a problem and students try to find solutions to a problem. The problem and its context has not solution. The students are active thinkers. Students are using critical thinking skills as they collaborate with their peers.  The teacher also acts as a facilitator, however the students create their own solutions. Students take action by constructively responding to the problem in which they have been engaged by the educator.