26-30
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
CONSCIOUSNESS RAISING AND BRAINWASHING
Many ‘experts’ in health and development place great emphasis on changing
the attitudes and behavior of ‘the people’ (by whom they mean the poor). They
appear not to realize that it is just as important to people’s health to change the
attitudes and behavior of the rich-of those in control (see p. 1-29).
Freire’s approach to critical awareness is refreshing because-in theory, at least-it
does not involve imposing the ideas and attitudes of ‘those who know’ upon ‘those
whose behavior needs to be changed’.
Conventional
instruction
passes
fromTEACHER
to STUDENT.
But
with
Frcirc’s
method,
learning
goes
both
ways.
TEACHER
STUDENT.
In Freire’s approach, the educational process is open-ended and adventurous.
Passing out information is considered less important than putting together the
learners’ own observations and experiences. The leader avoids imposing her
own views or conclusions on the group. Instead, learning is based on looking for
answers together.
To a large extent, how learning takes place determines what is learned. In other
word . . .
THE METHOD IS THE MESSAGE.
Such, at least, is the theory. Unfortunately,
in practice, ‘consciousness raising’ is full of
contradictions and pitfalls.
Freire himself stresses how important it is
for the discussion leader to ask questions
that do not already have the answers built
in. The leader must be prepared to have
the group come up with answers and
ideas completely different from what she
had expected. She must be ready to learn
from the group, not just about their culture,
but about her own culture and herself. She, too,
must be prepared to see things in a new way ... to
change.
A pitfall is in unexpected difficulty.