Literacy and revolution : the pedagogy of Paulo Freire

During recent years there has been, in many parts of the world, a considerable furore generated concerning literacy. Most often this has taken the form of assertions that the level of general literacy among schoolchildren and students in higher education has declined alarmingly. Currently in Britain, the United States, Canada and Australia, adherents to the decline and fall of literacy thesis have mounted extensive and influential campaigns to ensure that current educational practices focus more sharply on inculcating the 'three Rs'. 'Back to basics' or forward to fundamentals are contemporary slogans which capture this emphasis. Moreover, such calls are often accompanied by a condemnation of teachers who, by not systematically and rigorously pursuing literacy skills, are accused of failing to provide students with an adequate preparation either for post school education or work. Alleged deficiencies in literacy are then explicitly linked, particularly in the countries mentioned, with high rates of unemployment among young people.

On closer examination however, there is much in this argument that is naive and simplistic. Underlying it is a conception of literacy as the mere technique of reading and writing, which can be simply imparted, simply absorbed, and simply utilised. Viewed in this light, literacy is achieved when mechanical skills are acquired. Yet there is far more to it than this. What is especially ignored is the understanding that literacy is a process which continues throughout life. To be literate is not to have arrived at some pre-determined destination, but to utilise reading, writing and speaking skills so that our understanding of the world is progressively enlarged. Furthermore, literacy is not acquired neutrally, but in specific historical, social and cultural contexts. Far from being an end which merely reflects reality, as many current literacy iconoclasts imply, it is the means by which we comprehend, unravel and transform the reality in which we find ourselves. Indeed, the glaring omission in most functional analyses of literacy lies precisely in the failure to examine the context in which literacy actually functions. Thus literacy comes to be portrayed, in abstract and reified terms, as something which exists in a vacuum, remote and removed from other social relations. The same intellectual sleight of hand is at work when the inability of youth to gain employment is correlated with deficiencies in teaching. Few of the participants in this somewhat overheated debate go beyond the how of literacy, and explore the more fundamental questions of what, where, and why we read, write and speak the way we do.

One contemporary educator who neither ignores the means nor confuses the ends of literacy is the Brazilian Paulo Freire, Not only does he provide a viable, effective method for teaching adult illiterates; he also states, with admirable clarity and force, the inherently political nature of literacy. Strongly opposing the myths of neutrality, objectivity and impartiality which percolate every facet of education, Freire convincingly demonstrates that literacy can serve either to liberate human beings or domesticate them. His choice - and indeed that of every humanist educator - is, and must be the former.

Paulo Freire's essential contribution lies in his recognition of the way language forms our perceptions of the world, and our intentions towards it. In doing so he highlights the connections between language, politics and consciousness. Conceiving the task of literacy to be humanisation, Freire is led inevitably to an examination of the ways social and political structures impede this goal. As a consequence, his discussion of literacy and education has as one of its principal concerns the promotion of revolutionary social change. Freire's pedagogy focuses on human liberation from oppression, not only in Brazil, but everywhere oppression exists. So, while his theory has situated origins, its applications are potentially much wider. Consistent with the very best of educational traditions, Freire's ideas derive from practice, are moulded into theoretical explanations and perspectives, returning once again to be refurbished in practice. Eschewing both mindless activity and empty, recondite theoris ing, Freire unites action with reflection. The resultant praxis provides his work with a vital dynamic whereby literacy and education come to be seen as fully political constructs.