What Would Freire Do?

So there’s this guy. You might have heard of him. (No, it’s not my main (political) man, Obama.) This guy, he’s been around for a bit longer than Barack. He’s been around in education and has dabbled in United States affairs, but mostly through translation…because his work is from Brazil (no, P-Gill-S, it’s not the BBT). His name is Paulo Freire. Cool dude, this Paulo. Major contributor to a whole movement of a theory we around here in PhDness like to call Critical Theory. Among other things, Freire talks (or really talk–ed, cuz he be d-e-d…it’s a joke, people…I obviously know how to spell dead, but you never know these days with who’s critiquing whom…) so anyway, Freire talks about teachers and how we should be working toward becoming constant pedagogues of justice (btw, a “pedagogue” to those of you who are not familiar is simply…a teacher…well, it’s not really simple in the etymology of pedagogue, because the Greek origin of the word (paidagōgos)was a slave who escorted his pupil to school—a guide of the male pupil, if you will. Huge issues there that still prevail in my recent town-of-residence…but that won’t be the focus of this essay…

So, Freire writes in one of his books Teachers as Cultural Workers: Letters to Those Who Dare to Teach, that we as educators need to constantly work on (well, many things…he has really high expectations for us all) our constant commitment to justice, liberty, and individual rights. He says that we should always defend the weakest when they are subjected to the smack-down of the strongest…and that we need to always show students in our daily teachings that there is amazing power and strength in ethical struggles. How awesome is that? Paulo is all about helping those who are “oppressed” in some way, rise up and learn the meanings of ‘freedom’ by educating themselves with whatever means necessary or whatever knowledge surrounding them. But, he says, when those who are oppressed are being nailed down by the oppressor, if you will, it is our duty as teachers to protect them, help them, aid them in any way we can. Powerful man, I tellya! I’m pretty sure if I would have read Freire when I was teaching I would have been in more trouble with my boss man than I already was…cuz this guy is really liberating to read! Power to all people! Woop Woop!

And then there are my undergraduate students. The future teachers of America’s ten-to-fourteen-year-olds. The ones I teach. The ones I’m supposed to nurture and support. The ones who might not be oppressed as much as they are the oppressors, sometimes. The ones for whom I practice compassion and open-mindedness. Or I could. Or I should, and I could, and I do—sometimes—but other times…well…I need Paulo Freire to come talk to my students for an afternoon so he can see where I’m coming from here.

What I want is for my students to open their eyes and their minds and see the inequities that permeate many of the schoolroom walls if not in the country, at least here in Georgia. I want them to look beyond poverty as lazy people who just need to get a job; to try and understand that someone’s sexual preference may not be an “immoral choice,” to realize that the color white is not beautiful to everyone. I want a lot, as Freire wants a lot. And Freire asks me to be tolerant in my sojourn with my undergraduates. He tells me that without tolerance, no “serious” pedagogical work can take place and no kind of democratic experience is possible, because I am closing my mind and not trying to hear/understand my students…because some of them think differently than I do. And yes, of course I know that I used to think/act/live the way some of them do that come to my class at the ripe age of nineteen and twenty. But I don’t now. So I can judge all I want, right? As long as I’m working on being open and tolerant like Freire asks me to?

In order for me to be tolerant of my students, Freire tells me that I don’t have to give-in to intolerable acts, I don’t have to ignore disrespect, nor do I have to accept someone’s unacceptable behavior. In the most positive connotation I have read/heard in a while in relation to tolerance, Freire says it’s simply a virtue “that teaches us to live with the different. It teaches us to learn from and respect different.” I can do that. I can try and learn from others, get to know where they are coming from to help broaden my own understandings. Even with the nineteen and twenty-somethings.

Sometimes. Other times, well, not-so-much.

I mean, I can handle the, “Ms. Hughes, I was going to turn in that assignment today that was assigned three weeks ago (and is due today), but my printer ran out of ink this morning and so I couldn’t print it.” Because I know that they waited until last night AFTER they went downtown to the 14 bars to work on the social part of their teaching repertoire. I can do that one. “Sure. Just email it to me.” And I can handle the, “What? No we didn’t watch any of the presidential speeches or debates because we were too busy out on the town or busy doing work or because we don’t care.” (Yes, a few of them said that in class…to their instructor…during one of the most important times of our country’s history.) I can handle it because I’m working HARD to understand where they’re coming from and use those points as beginnings of strength. And because I know that some of them do care or will one day. And others, well, they really don’t care. I simply respond, “Well, if you’re going to become a public school educator, I would suggest you start caring. Right about now.” I know, supportive and gentle, right?

I have even learned to be more accepting of the, “I’m not sure I can do ‘hands-on’ learning with these kids…because….well….they’re too ‘low’ or too poor or too whatever" the new excuse is about children who do not come from their same backgrounds or do not look like them. Because I can say, “You can and you will. You will plan your lessons as if every child in the class is ‘gifted’ and then scaffold appropriately. I promise you it will be successful.” Because then it is successful and they never think that again. Or at least never say that to me again. All of these things I’m learning to open up to---I’m trying to “learn from and respect different.”

But like I said, only sometimes. One of the other times is represented below in an anecdote of “ethical struggle” presented to me recently, I’m sure, so I can practice compassion and open-mindedness with ALL students:

Ten Minutes into My First Meeting with Miss GA/FL

Me: So what days would you like me to come observe you teach this class? I will let you choose since it’s your first time being observed, so you feel comfortable.

Precious-twenty-year-old: Well, I’d rather you wait a few weeks so I feel comfortable with the class and the students.

Me: That’s fine. How about the first week of November?

Precious-twenty-year-old-southern-belle: Well, of course you can’t come on that Monday, November 1st because that’s the weekend of Georgia/Florida, and I’ll just be exhausted from the game! I definitely won’t feel like teaching that day! And the rest of the week, I’m pretty booked up.

Me: Huh?

Precious-obviously-confused-twenty-year-old-southern-belle: I mean, of course you understand. I’ll be in Jacksonville that whole weekend, beginning Thursday, of course, because we have fall break on Friday. I won’t get back until late Sunday night, so Monday just won’t work for me teaching.

Me: Oh…Um. OK.

I mean, what could I say? It IS the World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party. Who am I to get in the way of that?

I can see it now. It’s the year 2010. Miss GA/FL has her own class of precious 6th graders (probably in a private school so she won’t have to deal with the riff-raff) and there is a huge Halloween party in her little town. Unfortunately for her 6th graders, the party falls on a Thursday night instead of a Friday night. Miss GA/FL calls in and leaves a message for the front office: “Yes, office girl? I will not be able to make it in tomorrow because I have an event to attend tonight where I’ll be dressing as Minnie Mouse. I’ll not be able to make it in tomorrow because I’ll simply be exhausted! See you on Monday.”

Just today, I did observe Miss Georgia/Florida teach her class (mind you, today is the day before GA/FL game—we compromised…or…something like that), and when I asked if we could meet after the lesson for our post-observation meeting, she laughingly reminded me that it would be impossible because she had to rush home and meet people to get on the road for the game. She did tell me to have a good weekend, though, so that was nice.

Open-mindedness….learn from different….respect different….we’ll see, Paulo….we’ll see…..

Maybe I’ll move to Brazil and see how they do things there…without…football…