Critical Pedagogy: Where Are We Now?

by Peter McLaren (Editor), Joe L. Kincheloe (Editor)

Our educational system is in turmoil. Many would argue that it has been assaulted and oversimplified by the right. There is growing concern that we are becoming a liberal nation-state with an increasingly anti-liberal population and an electorate that is disinterested in politics. In this globalized world, the power of capital is so great that opposition to it is often discouraged and disheartened, leaving many citizens few political precepts by which to consider their institutions. This contemporary failure of vision has opened the way for the unimpeded return of the philosophy of the free market. As a result, social and educational policies are debated almost solely in terms of how they fit with the needs of the market. Social and ethical understandings are replaced by a failed economic theory that requires a radical constraint of our political and economic choices. Compassion for the poor, the market lets us know, is wrong-headed because any interference with the labor market will always result in unfortunate economic and social consequences. Moral issues are eclipsed by market needs. In Critical Pedagogy: Where Are We Now? the contributors discuss how the field of critical pedagogy should respond to such dire conditions in a way that is theoretically savvy and visionary, while concurrently contributing to the struggle to improve the lives of those most hurt by them. Critical Pedagogy is essential reading for every classroom teacher and pre-service teacher. It is also a valuable tool for use in undergraduate and graduate-level classrooms.

Genres: Education, Nonfiction

411 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2007

About the author

Professor in the Division of Urban Schooling, the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies, University of California, Los Angeles (United States). He is the author and editor of forty-five books and hundreds of scholarly articles and chapters. His writings have been translated into 20 languages.

He is known as one of the leading architects of critical pedagogy and for his scholarly writings on critical literacy, the sociology of education, cultural studies, critical ethnography, and Marxist theory. He has developed a reputation for his uncompromising political analysis influenced by a Marxist humanist philosophy and a unique literary style of expression. His scholarship and political activism have taken him throughout Latin America, the Caribbean, Europe, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia.

Reviews

[Drick · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a student of Paulo Freire, I was mildly aware of Critical Pedagogy as a school of thought with schools of education. However, this book plunged me into the debate within critical pedagogy today. I realized that some of my misunderstanding and misgivings about CP are the subject of much discussion within the movement. Some of those issues include the following:

- How importance is the language of CP? With it's neo-Marxist leanings some authors seem to be bent on creating a new language universe. As a result CP often seems to be a liberal/radical form of elitism, something Freire himself soundly criticized.This issue is addressed on several levels.

- Is a Marxist orientation necessary for CP? Clearly seeing capitalism and neo-liberalism as the cause of the world's inequities, leaves many CP advocates promoting Marxist solutions. While I see the value of critiquing capitalism thru a Marxist lens, given the failure of Marxism, should we not be looking for a new way to order our social and economic life; are capitalism and Marxism our only options?

- How much should CP teachers "impose" their views on their students? Should not teachers seeking to build a democratic society encourage dialogue and debate rather than seeking a prescribed outcome? How does that make us fundamentally different than our conservative counterparts?

These and many other issues are discussed in this helpful volume. My only constructive criticism would have been a glossary of terms for the neophytes like me. At times I found myself wading through verbiage that just did not make sense. I actually had to stop and read one of Kincheloe's earlier books (Critical Pedagogy Primer) just to be able to stay up with some authors. However, the primary audience were other CP practitioners, and so in that sense it achieved its goals.

[Arturo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book, like many of Peter McLaren's and Joe Kincheloe's books, is a must read for those new to Critical Pedagogy. In an era where education is becoming increasingly corporatized, McLaren and Kincheloe's work continue to prove ever more relevant. To take a position, as Freire, would argue, with and for the oppressed is never an easy road, to do so and have a lasting effect on past present and future educators, as argued in Critical Pedagogy: Where Are We Now, is to work with communities to continue developing the moral and intellectual tools necessary for the opposition of oppression.

[M310 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Joe Kincheloe and Peter McLaren spearhead an outstanding work in critical pedagogy. I recommend this work to any teachers as well as students of education interested in rescuing public education from the clutches of privatization. Kincheloe and McLaren have compiled one of the most important books in education today.

[Jeff · Rating 2 out of 5]

I got to page 90 and didn't finish this. I was hoping to get through it, but other books were more interesting.