The Radicalization of Pedagogy

by Richard White, Marcelo Lopes de Souza Professor of Geography Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) Brazil. (Editor), Richard J. White Reader in Economic Geography (Editor)

How do activists learn radical politics? Does the increasing neoliberalisation of education limit the possibilities of transgressive pedagogies? And in what contexts have anarchist geographers successfully shaped alternative pedagogic practices? Pedagogy is central to geographical knowledge and represents one of the key sites of contact where anarchist approaches can inform and revitalize contemporary geographical thought. This book looks at how anarchist geographers have shaped pedagogies that move towards bottom-up, organic transformations of societies, spaces, subjectivities, and modes of organizing, where the importance of direct action and prefigurative politics take precedence over concerns about the state. Examining contemporary and historical case studies across the world, from formal and informal contexts, the chapters show the potential for new imaginaries of anarchist geographies that will challenge and inspire geographers to travel beyond the traditional frontiers of geographical knowledge."

Genres: Education, Politics

290 pages, Paperback

First published May 16, 2016

About the author

Richard White is the author of many acclaimed histories, including the groundbreaking study of the transcontinentals, Railroaded, winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, the Francis Parkman Prize, and a Pulitzer Prize finalist. He is Margaret Byrne Professor of American History, Emeritus, at Stanford University, and lives near Palo Alto, California.

Reviews

[Shanae · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got this book to read the Levi chapter on Zapatista pedagogy and was disappointed in the jargon soup with very little critical analysis. The question of how Zapatista worldviews and values are brought into the classroom is not answered with any concrete examples of praxis. This chapter really did a disservice to Zapatista pedagogy. To give the collection another chance, I read the Taje chapter on Free Schools and it offered an engaging analysis of concrete examples to demonstrate how free schools liberate students. Taje is a compelling writer and storyteller. His essay is a meta-example of radical pedagogy that applies the theories and histories behind free schools to examples of practice that are not prescriptive, but critically descriptive and inspiringly suggestive.

[Nik · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although it had flashes of brilliance, this edited volume was quite a drag... dense and often-times incomprehensible.