Critical Pedagogy

I see critical pedagogy at the core of endeavors that lead to several sub-fields, such as critical literacy, multicultural education, diversity education, school reforms, feminism, and the latest version of critical thinking. Pedagogy that can help change the status quo, the prevailing systems in all levels of human society in which oppression and injustice exist to benefit certain groups of people, because it is radical and to the point, attacking the causes or the roots of human problems.  Oppression leads to dissent or resistence, and thus violence follows.  I see our world as being more and more violent. Critical pedagogy, however, is like a two-pronged sword.  It has to be based on compassion, faith in human being's potential to be better, and wisdom at a high level of what life is and is not.

I am still struggling to combine Paolo Freire's approaches with the politics of education in the real world in which conflicts and complexities have come very far, perhaps rather too far now.

Here are some of what I wrote or read in the past as part of my transformation since 2002, when I first greeted Freire and thinkers on his camp.

Critical pedagogy  => critical literacy =< moral decisions =< spirituality in education--Updated! February 5, 2005
Making Senses of Paolo Freire's Life and Work (recommended resources)
My research & Projects
Critical Literacy as "Compromisation"
Critical Literacy vs. Critical Thinking
Critical Literacy in EFL Context: An introduction for novices
Six Rules for Critical Thinking
Critical Literacy: A missing ingredient in Thai education
"Critical" in context of use
A plain talk about literacy, literacies, and critical literacy
"Banking Education" as Freire sees
Freire's empowering education
Critical news consumers
How about treating one another with respect?
Some resources on Critical Literacy

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See "Critical Literacy" for how these fields of my interests are connected.