Pedagogy Of The Oppressed Chapter 2 Summary

In chapter 2 of Paulo Freire’s book Pedagogy of the Oppressed, the chapter focuses on two concepts of education, banking and problem posing. Freire points out that “banking” deposits information into the student, with no allowance of questions or discussions, which in turn “oppresses” the students as individuals. He believes this form of education inhibits students as human beings, and is essentially more harmful to both the student and the instructor. He expresses that this form of education leaves the students being oppressed by the instructors, as well as the instructor, in essence, oppressing themselves by allowing no room for inquiries or personal growth on either party, because neither students nor instructors utilize critical thinking.

Freire proposes the educational concept of “problem posing”, in which students and teachers are both interchangeable roles, both the students and teachers discuss topics and learn together, which employs the use of critical thinking for both parties. Do both styles deserve a place in the education system, or should we reevaluate our methods accordingly?

Certain subjects can be beneficial when taught in this ‘banking’ manner, such as arithmetic, or even language and spelling.

No matter how many times a student wants to discuss why Tuesday is spelled with a ‘ue’ instead ‘oo’, these answers will still be the same. However, the problem arises when students are being taught a subject from which class discussions could prove beneficial, and there is little consideration for the importance of what is being memorized. For example, in history classes, children are taught specific dates to remember regarding when a war had been started and had ended, with little time focused on discussing how the lives of the people involved, the economy, or the environment were affected. On the other hand, at his previous school, before moving to Springfield, my nephew and his classmates were given spelling lists at the beginning of each week that they were to practice, and test on at the end of the week. Upon moving to the Springfield school district, we noticed they did not teach or practice spelling words. Furthermore, we also noticed he was starting to struggle with reading, and even had problems recalling words he had previously learned. When his instructors were asked why they do not participate in spelling tests, she informed us that the school district does not consider this to be beneficial to the students, so therefore, they took it off the

curriculum.

Both of these teaching styles are important to a students’ education, each having their own place. Instructors must be trusted to know what method to use, and the proper time to use them. Every student is different and learns best in different ways. As of now, there is no ‘sure fire’ plan to be able to appeal to every students educational needs, the system is doing the best that it can, and should be trusted as so.