"Pedagogy of the Oppressed" by Freire (Chapter Two)

In chapter two, education means the teacher is the narrator, putting information into the students (the objects) and the students only store the information like machines. The teachers control the students like their possessions. They require rote learning. The students do not really gain knowledge. The teacher and students assume that the teacher has all the information and the students have none, that the teacher cannot learn from the students. Freire said, "It [education] attempts to control thinking and action, leads women and men to adjust to the world, and inhibits their creative power.” A solution is that society needs to realize that both are teachers and students.

In Freire's banking model, the teacher acts toward the students and they receive information and discipline. The teacher makes all the reflections and decisions as the students listen and comply to the teacher’s authority as the subject with the knowledge. When the teacher is in control of the information and content, the students only know what they are meant to know and do not learn critical thinking; therefore, the oppressors can control them to not seek change. They are passive but they fulfill their purpose in society. I think of "The Giver" By Lois Lowry. Everyone lives the same way. At each age, children are allowed more responsibility. By 12, they each have an occupation they fulfill until they are old. No one questions that there are only three books in the house. No one questions the authority of the elders to require strict rules. Everyone seems to be happy with their regulated but equal lives. Until Jonas finds out that there are so many happy and sad things the people are kept from. They do not know about hills, or snow. Nor do they know about warfare and hunger. The village cannot make decisions for itself because education focuses on how to be a polite member of society, not a critical problem solver.

Freire said, instead of changing the oppressed situation, the oppressors just want to change what the oppressed think about their oppression. The oppressed are inside the same system as the oppressors and must become “beings for themselves” in order to change that system. They must seek humanization as they recognize the contradictions in what they have been spoon fed in education.
He said the solution is the teacher and the students must have a partnership. They must communicate and not see each other as objects. We must build relationships with our students to build trust. So often, our students think that we teachers live at the school and spend our days thinking of boring lesson plans. If we invest in the real person, not just the role in the classroom, we can learn so much more of the content as well. The solution must be made together

As I read, I wondered why Freire said creating structure, like adding a page parameter to a reading assignment matter? I believe schools has somewhat inflexible instruction and policies. However, saying "read pages 10-15" give students a standard to base themselves off of. It helps them know what they need to accomplish.