Popular Education as an Organizational Strategy Beyond Pedagogical Methods: Building Grassroots Educational Capacities in Social Movements

• In Event: Activism in education: teacher advocacy and social movements

Proposal

This research examines how social movements embody popular education as an organizational strategy, specifically through an ethnographic study of educational initiatives in the Korean labor movement. Popular education refers to emancipatory educational philosophy and practices aimed at social transformation, distinct from traditional education geared toward social reproduction (Freire, 1970). Linking popular education to social movements, various empirical studies have highlighted its liberatory values, process, and effectiveness through case analysis (Cardona, 2019; Delp et al., 2002; Brown, 2006). However, the empirical studies often limit their discussion to how the philosophy of popular education is realized in pedagogical methods, without exploring how the pedagogical methods are feasible in social movements. Educational activities in social movements require a variety of organizational efforts such as organizing participants and mobilizing educational resources. Therefore, this research goes beyond viewing the practice of popular education merely as a pedagogical method and instead focuses on it as an organizational strategy.

Popular education was conceptualized by Paulo Freire (1970) as a dialogical education model, an alternative to banking education. Drawing on Freire’s works (1970; 1985; 1992), I specify popular education as the following core principles across ontological, epistemological, methodological, and teleological dimensions. First, ontologically, it is based on the equality of educators and the educated. Second, its epistemological principle is that people learn through the dialectical relationship between reflection and action. Third, methodologically, popular education relies on dialogue, rather than unilateral delivery of knowledge. Finally, teleologically, and above all, popular education aims for social transformation rather than the preservation of the status quo. These principles are interconnected rather than separate.

How can social movements realize the principles of popular education in practice? My research aims to answer this question by approaching popular education as an organizational strategy. Organizations are the crucial actors responsible for the organizing necessary to form and develop social movements (Davis et al., 2005; Zald & McCarthy, 1987). In particular, organizational strategies that strengthen the engagement and consciousness-raising of participants have been studied as a significant topic in social movement scholarship (Han, 2014; Warren, 2001). An organizational strategy is not limited to technical tactics; rather, it refers to an organization’s deliberate actions, which consider internal resources and external environments (Ganz, 2000). With a focus on organizational strategy, this study will specifically analyze how the Korean Public Service and Transportation Workers’ Union (KPTU), the largest industrial union in the Korean labor movement, has embodied popular education in practice.

Globally, the decline of labor movements since the 1970s has resulted in a more defensive posture, often at the expense of social transformation (Vachon et al., 2016; Wallerstein & Western, 2000). The Korean labor movement has been no exception. In particular, rank-and-file workers at the grassroots level became more focused on their immediate economic interests at the expense of broader social movement and working-class solidarity (Yoo, 2005). To counter this trend, Korean trade unions began to institutionalize labor education at the organizational dimension in the early 2000s, drawing on the philosophy of popular education, though not without experiencing some trial and error. In 2020, the KPTU developed the Grassroots Learning Program (GLP) to embody popular education as an organizational strategy and succeeded in spreading the educational initiative at the grassroots level. To investigate the GLP, I conducted a political ethnography in the KPTU for a year, capturing patterns in the formation of workers as political actors (Joseph et al., 2007). For data collection, I interviewed 53 trade unionists about their experiences with the GLP and carried out participant observation in two local unions that directly implemented the GLP.

GLP is an educational initiative that consists of a 10-session program designed for rank-and-file workers to teach their peers, rooted in popular education. The GLP has seen a steady increase in participation since its launch in 2020 and is making significant strides in engaging rank-and-file workers within local unions. My analysis indicates that the GLP has successfully embodied popular education through building grassroots educational capacity—an organizational strategy. This strategy comprises three key components. First, the GLP has focused on recruiting and training workers to become educators themselves, even if they lack expertise in educational content or methods. The central organization and regional headquarters of the KPTU actively recruit rank-and-file workers and provide them with a 40-hour training program. This program builds the confidence and capacity of rank-and-file workers as educators, demonstrating that anyone can be an educator.

Second, GLP integrates curriculum development by the central organization with educational practice by grassroots organizations to connect workers’ experiences with societal issues. Due to limited material and human resources, regional and grassroots trade unions often lack the capacity to develop educational programs that address social movements. Consequently, activists from the central organization create the GLP curriculum. This curriculum is continuously updated based on evaluations and feedback from local unions implementing GLP, ensuring that workers have the opportunity to relate their experiences to social transformation.

Finally, GLP effectively organized participants’ praxis through organizational interventions at various levels of the KPTU. Praxis, as described by Allman (2010), involves a dialectical relationship between reflection and action rather than a sequential one. Therefore, continuous education is essential for workers to experience a dialectical relationship between educational content and their union activities. Sustaining the 10-session education program in local unions cannot rely solely on the competence of educators or the enthusiasm of learners; it depends on active involvement across multiple organizational levels, from the central office to regional headquarters and local union leadership.

This research highlights the importance of an organization that previous studies on popular education have often overlooked. Specifically, it shows that popular education is not merely a pedagogical method for individual educators but a strategic approach where organizations build educational capacity at the grassroots level. Since the specific application of popular education as an organizational strategy may vary depending on social movements, the organizational strategy observed in the Korean labor movement may not be directly applicable to other contexts. Nevertheless, this study provides practical insights for educators seeking to implement popular education within social movements.

Author

• Jaeung Kim, The Pennsylvania State University