Critical Pedagogy: Understanding Its Meaning, Importance, and Impact on Education
Critical Pedagogy: Understanding Its Meaning, Importance, and Impact on Education Critical pedagogy is an educational approach that connects teaching with issues of power, inequality, and social justice. The concept was developed by Paulo Freire through his influential book Pedagogy of the Oppressed. This approach views education as a process that can either maintain existing social structures or transform them. Because of this, critical pedagogy has become an important framework in modern educational theory and practice. Critical pedagogy encourages students to question and challenge dominant ideas, social norms, and systems of power. Traditional education often positions students as passive recipients of knowledge. Freire (1970) refers to this as the “banking model,” where teachers deposit information into students. In contrast, critical pedagogy promotes dialogue, reflection, and active participation. Students are not just learners but also thinkers who engage with knowledge critica...