What is Critical Pedagogy?
Greene’s critical pedagogy vision encompasses 2 cornerstone of pedagogy, a need for communities pursuing common goals, and a significance of imaginative voices of artists in mankind’s dialogue. With these as a strong foundation, educators will have a means to surmount cultural barriers, violent aggression, student body disinterests in learning, and most importantly, fear of and dissatisfaction with public school systems. She pulls out an understanding that we hear quoted as a great slogan but few find ways to really embrace and carry out due to lack of support, time, and enough resources: It takes a community to raise a child!
This greatly relates to my pedagogy philosophy, establishing and enriching a community firstly in the classroom, where guardians and community members are welcomed, embraced, and needed to further cultivate the whole persons of the culture. Therefore, in teaching difficult topics, students must be informed of and helped to understand the need for all students in the classroom community, and especially those supporting us from the community (guardians, community helpers, tax payers, etc.).
This can be implemented in various ways, inviting community members, whose careers are directly related to the subject being taught (which I am looking into for my own topic), asking students to share about anyone they know may be whose lives are somehow involved in the subject, etc. Also, there is a need for classroom experiences and materials used throughout instruction and exploration, to be connected between relevant cultures in ways that inspire students for understanding and helping each other practice acceptance towards all peers.
Framework connected with Montessori Philosophy:
As Greene displays the changes over time in public schools and expectations thereof, she seems to point out the need for becoming more comprehensive to the true needs of the growing and diverse “newcomers” of each generation within our societies’ communities. Below is a group of comparisons that I have found of public schools verses Montessori schools. And although it seems impossible for these practices to take place in our red-tape public schools system, Greene seems to be pointing to a hope, and understanding of practical ways, to get their. The following are a list of descriptions of firstly Montessori schools practice verses their counterparts, public schools. I noticed how the Montessori portrayals seem to be similar towards the goals Greene is aiming (maybe not each, yet the idea/vision is clear):
- Advocate Divergent vs. Convergent
- Mixed age classes vs. Same age classes
- Seeing big picture vs. Task oriented
- Follow interests vs. “Cover” pre-determined curriculum
Some Montessori philosophies, which are difficult to implement into daily practice at traditional public schools, are as follows:
- Children who are at total liberty to interact with environment in their own way develop an innate self-discipline, love for order and natural curiosity
- When a child understands WHY s/he needs to learn something, s/he will then be ready for and love the learning process; the natural curiosity leads to what THAT CHILD needs to learn (self-paced/designed curriculum)
4:02 pm - 3-17-2012
Lyndsy, I really enjoyed reading your understanding of Green’s article … it seems to be easier than my article.
We grew up with belief that ‘it takes a village to raise a child’. I can recall one of our previous Ministers of Education tried to bring this back when she was in power between 2005 and 2009, as she saw many changes in our society – family structures, students, schools, many were of great concerns.
The question is, how do we get a group of people to share, believe and follow through on the same common goals “for the sake of the children / for their benefits?”
The autobiography that I’m reading, is finally working in a school where all the teachers care about one thing – the students and the students learning. However, he has faced the same issue of working with other colleagues of all the schools he has worked, to NOT be on the same page of common goals. How does an administrator ensure that his/her staff embrace firmly, the school’s goals? What does one do when they let go?