The Critical Pedagogy of Paulo Freire to Counterbalance the Threat of Neoliberalism to Education and Democracy

• In Event: Roundtable Session 41
  In Roundtable Session: Neoliberalism, Neocolonial Domination, and Democratizing Research

Abstract

The paper highlights the interconnection and importance of higher education for a substantive democracy. The threat to the meaning of higher education by neoliberal thought will also jeopardize substantive democracy. Survival of substantive democracy will require an educated citizenry that is versed in a culture of questioning, rooted in a sense of curiosity, the ability to think critically and to analyze the nature of knowledge, and the ability to dialogue, and the courage for agency. All these facets of education are clearly spelled out in the works of Paulo Freire and are aspects of critical pedagogy. Anchoring education in critical pedagogy will ensure that young adults will become ardent supporters of democracy and opponents to any form of authoritarianism.

Author

• Ana Lucia Cruz, Saint Louis Community College