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Everything About Liberationist Pedagogy
Wouldn’t it be better for learners to be in a virtual classroom where they’re not just expected to absorb information but encouraged to question, explore, and speak up? Unfortunately, traditional education may leave little room for freedom due to structured lesson plans and generic approaches. This is exactly why liberationist pedagogy is needed.
This was first introduced by Paulo Freire, a Brazilian educator and philosopher who challenged the conventional model of education, where teachers just present knowledge to passive students. Instead, he proposed that education should be a practice of freedom. According to him, real learning happens when people think critically, reflect on what they know, and take ownership of their understanding.
This liberationist pedagogy is incredibly relevant today, especially in eLearning. As digital learning becomes increasingly popular, there’s a huge opportunity to create online spaces where learners aren’t just scrolling through modules but actively engaging, questioning, and leading their own path. Since your learners can live in any part of the world, come from different backgrounds, and have unique experiences, this approach puts people and their individualities at the center of eLearning. Let’s see what this is all about.
The Core Concepts Of Liberationist Pedagogy
Paulo Freire was born in Brazil in 1921. He grew up in poverty and saw how education and its absence shaped people’s lives. This inspired him to challenge the traditional teaching model, the one where the teacher talks and students just listen and memorize. He claimed that students shouldn’t just be passive receivers of information. Rather, they should actively participate in their learning, questioning, discussing, thinking critically, and connecting what they learn to real life. At the heart of his philosophy was this: education should empower people to understand the world around them and take action to change it. Freire’s ideas are surprisingly relevant to today’s digital learning environments, especially when designing eLearning courses that aim to be meaningful and even life-changing.
Now let’s dive a little more into the concept. Critical thinking and learner agency play a huge role in liberationist pedagogy. Critical thinking is all about encouraging learners to question what they’re learning, why it matters, and how it connects to their world. In an eLearning setting, this might mean prompting learners to reflect on real-life issues or challenging them to see multiple sides of a problem instead of simply clicking and selecting correct answers. As for learner agency, it involves giving learners choices and allowing them to take charge of their own learning paths. For example, in an online course, learners can choose their project topics based on what excites them or discuss course material in open forums without the fear of judgment. These strategies help learners see themselves not just as students but as co-creators of knowledge. Below, we will explore how to practically implement liberationism in your online courses.
How To Apply Liberationism In eLearning
Open-Ended Questions
Freire highlighted how important dialogue is for learning, and questions tend to spark dialogues and start conversations. Specifically, we’re talking about questions that make learners reflect and respond according to their own perspective. In eLearning, this means going for open-ended questions. You can use them in discussion forums, as prompts in assignments, and as questions at the end of videos. Since these questions don’t have one correct answer, they allow for multiple perspectives and encourage learners to connect content with their world.
Journaling
According to Freire, reflection is essential to action. In digital classrooms, reflective journaling gives students a private space to pause and find meaning in what they’re learning. It’s more of a learning tool than a diary. But how does it work? Many LMSs offer journal features where students can post weekly thoughts, answer reflection prompts, or document their growth. For more advanced learners, you can build each of them a public blog, allowing them to track progress and receive feedback. For example, you can use prompts such as, “What did you find most interesting in this module?” or “What would you do differently if you were in this situation?”
Freedom On Projects
Most eLearning courses still follow the traditional model where the instructor decides what’s important, how it should be learned, and how it will be assessed. On the contrary, liberationist pedagogy is all about giving learners the freedom to lead their own projects. How does this look in practice? First, adopt project-based learning. Instead of assigning a paper on topics you choose, let learners pick a specific topic and present it however they choose. Also, you can offer options for how they can complete a task. For instance, they can choose between writing a case study, conducting an interview, or creating a mini-course for their peers. Lastly, for longer courses, give them a chance to design a final product that reflects what they’ve learned and why it matters to them personally.
Peer Teaching
Freire challenged the belief that the teacher is the ultimate authority. He saw learning as a mutual process, where both teacher and student bring something to the table. In online learning, that often comes in the form of peer teaching. When students teach each other, they understand content better and come together as a community. To implement this, create groups of students, assign each group a topic, and ask them to explain it in their own words. Additionally, give learners the chance to create short presentations explaining a concept to their peers or make a short video about it. Remember, though, that learners don’t have to be experts—they just have to be curious and respectful of each other’s perspectives.
Shared Learning Spaces
Connection is the core of liberationist pedagogy. And since eLearning can be an isolating experience, shared learning spaces are extremely important. It’s not just about group projects. Shared learning spaces are open environments where students can connect, ask each other, and challenge concepts together. To build them, start by creating discussion boards. There, learners can share articles, current events, or personal experiences. Then, encourage students to use collaborative documents. Platforms like Google Docs allow learners to co-write and work together on projects or share resources. Lastly, try virtual study groups. Host optional Zoom or Teams sessions that are about asking questions, sharing resources, or expressing concerns.
Conclusion
Instructional Designers and educators have the opportunity to move past the good old content delivery methods and try something different. Therefore, start creating spaces where learners feel seen, heard, and empowered. By focusing on connection and adding meaning, you build trust, encourage reflection, and allow learners to explore and express themselves. After all, the more we let students take control of their learning journey, the more invested and engaged they become.
