paulo freire we make the road by walking

I go back to it and visit the ideas like old friends each time I need to remember the essence of my role as an educator. Its hard not to be affected by the kindred spirit infused with love these two share.įor anyone seeking to renew and inspire a love of education, I recommend this endearing book.

What shines through in reading this book is the depth of value these two revolutionary thinkers hold for the process of education. A teacher needs to be skilled in helping students find their own answers. A teacher doesn’t need to know every answer. Horton views teachers as guides rather than gatekeepers of information. He talks about the importance of finding a process for learning, rather than relying only on books, or teachers, to get answers. The conversations take place at the home of Myles Horton. In conversation with Horton, Freire says:įor me there is a certain sensualism in writing and reading-Īnd in teaching, in knowing…Knowing for me is not a neutralĪct, not only from the political point of view, from the point of view According to Freire, this style of education contributes to oppression, rather than freedom.

Throughout his work, Freire refers to the “banking” style of education wherein the technician (teacher) deposits predetermined information into the account (student) and expectantly awaits a formulaic outcome. In fact, in the author’s view, the content of curricula cannot be determined in absence of the students. Students, and their experiences, are to be respected as critical aspects of the learning process. They talk extensively about how the teachers approach will determine the success or failure to build positive relationships in the learning environment relationships that inform the selection of content. Both Freire and Horton were as concerned with the “how” as the “what” of education, so to speak. “We Make the Road by Walking” is a collection of candid, provocative and intimate conversations between Myles and Paulo, two lovers of freedom through education.Īt its’ heart, the book is about pedagogy. What I didn’t know going into this book was that Freire had a theoretic doppelgänger in the Appalachian Mountains of America, named Myles Horton. I had already fallen in love with the paradoxically romantic and pragmatic tale of Freire’s endeavor to effect social change in his homeland Brazil by teaching the most marginalized people to read so they could vote. I was already a dedicated fan of Paulo Freire when my professor assigned the book.

Paulo freire we make the road by walking