Why is Paulo Freire important in Literature and Education?

Born: September 19, 1921, Recife, State of Pernambuco, Brazil

Died: May 2, 1997, São Paulo, State of São Paulo, Brazil

Known for: Theories of education, advocacy of critical pedagogy

Education: Faculdade de Direito do Recife, Federal University of Pernambuco UFPE, Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo

Influenced by: Karl Marx, Jean-Jacques Rousseau

1. MOST FAMOUS APPLICATION: In the United States, Freire has inspired the movement for “critical pedagogy,” which seeks to reconstruct both schools and society. Around the world, Freire’s work has been used by many revolutionary movements (such as Amílcar Cabral in Guinea Bissau, the Landless Workers’ Movement in Brazil, and the Zapatistas in Mexico), by popular literacy campaigns, and in the World Social Forums.

2. MIS-APPLICATION: Some educators take the words “popular education” to simply mean taking complex information and dumbing it down or sloganizing it, a misguided approach rooted in the very idea that Pedagogy of the Oppressed opposes: that the educators are experts while the students are empty and passive receptacles awaiting knowledge.

“Education either functions as an instrument which is used to facilitate integration of the younger generation into the logic of the present system and bring about conformity or it becomes the practice of freedom, the means by which men and women deal critically and creatively with reality and discover how to participate in the transformation of their world.” ~Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed

Over a lifetime of work with revolutionary organizers and educators, radical educator Paulo Freire created an approach to emancipatory education and a lens through which to understand systems of oppression in order to transform them. He flipped mainstream pedagogy on its head by insisting that true knowledge and expertise already exist within people. They need no “deposits” of information (what Freire calls “banking education”), nor do they need leftist propaganda to convince them of their problems. What is required to transform the world is dialogue, critical questioning, love for humanity, and praxis, the synthesis of critical reflection and action.

In short, Pedagogy of the Oppressed is education as a practice of freedom, which Freire contrasts with education as a practice of domination (see below).

Banking education:  education as the practice of domination

Goal is to adapt people to their oppressive conditions.
Teacher attempts to control thinking and action of the students, who are treated as passive objects.
Assumes that people are merely in the world, not connected to it or each other.
Removes students from their context; teaches reality as unchangeable.
Treats oppressed people as marginal to a healthy society and in need of incorporation into it.
Fundamental to maintaining systems of oppression.

Problem-posing education: education as a practice of freedom

• Goal is to transform structural oppression.
• Both educator and educand (Freire’s word for “student,” designed to convey an equitable and reciprocal relationship) teach and learn from each other.
• Assumes the world is an unfolding historical process; everything and everyone is interrelated.
• Begins with the educands’ history, present and unwritten future.
• Seeks to transform society to rehumanize both the oppressed and their oppressors.
• Fundamental to the revolutionary process.

Dialogue and participatory action research are two practices heavily influenced by Freire that are now common in the fields of popular education, critical pedagogy, Theater of the Oppressed, and eco-pedagogy. Freire explains that what most people think of as dialogue is really just debate, a zero-sum game in which people compete to deposit ideas into one another or name the world on behalf of others as an end in itself. In dialogue, on the other hand, both parties work together to name their world by exploring their lived experiences to identify common patterns and generate action.

Participatory action research, meanwhile, is a community-led process in which people determine solutions to their problems by gathering data from their peers, analyzing it, and then taking informed action. It’s a model of community organizing that builds the capacity and expertise of those on the front lines.

Unfortunately, many progressive movements today are still trapped in the “banking” approach to education, seeing the public as a passive receptacle of their information. According to Freire, transforming the world requires flipping this model and replacing it with ground-up practices of emancipatory education, organizing and action.

Welcome to AP Literature 2019-2020!

Critical Studies author bell hooks (photo: Google search-fair use)

Note: On occasion, I might post a paper about an author that I've done a piece about their theories. This is one occasion.) Read: Critiquing bell hooks Postmodern Blackness: Does Black Literature need the critical apparatus of Black Postmodernism? 

Designated for motivated students with a command of standard English, an interest in exploring and analyzing challenging classical and contemporary literature, and a desire to analyze and interpret dominant literary genres and themes, it is often offered to high school seniors and the other AP English course, AP English Language and Composition, to juniors. The College Board does not restrict courses by grade. Students learn and apply methods of literary analysis and write with a variety of purposes to increase precision in expression. Students in AP English Literature and Composition typically sit for the national AP examination administered each May for the College Board by the Educational Testing Service. The College Board publishes changing information about all AP courses and examinations on its web site.

On one of the three essays students write as part of the examination, students choose a work of literature they will write about. Readers of the exam who get an essay on a work they have not read typically pass the essay to a reader who has. The scoring guides that readers use to rate the essays are developed by experienced readers on site just before the reading begins each June, using some of the actual exam essays. Since those scoring guides do not exist before the Reading, instructors cannot teach to them but focus instead on encouraging text-based analysis.

The College Board publishes a recommended reading list, while emphasizing that it "does not mandate any particular authors or reading list." The reading list contains four major categories:

• Poetry, ranging from the 16th century (William Shakespeare) to contemporary poets (Seamus Heaney);
• Drama, ranging from Greek tragedies (Aeschylus) to post-modern absurdists (Tom Stoppard);
• Fiction – novels and short stories, from the 18th century comedies of manner of Jane Austen to the famous "Lost Generation" of F. Scott Fitzgeraldand Ernest Hemingway;
• Expository prose (essays), including Ralph Waldo Emerson and George Orwell.

All categories also incorporate works from traditionally under-represented writers, especially from racial minorities.

Putting an End to Fake Reading (Krulder, 2018)

Five ideas on how to get students to really read books—and enjoy themselves while doing so. From the website "Edutopia.org" - fair use, 2019. 

All English teachers want their students to develop a love of reading, but this is anything but a simple endeavor. Although I used to give students time to read once a week in my English classes for several years, I always knew I wasn’t making the impact I was aiming for.

After a few years, I was able to get the whole class to be silent during the reading period, but I realized that not all of the students were actually reading—and that my reading program was anything but a success.

A few summers ago, I read Donalyn Miller’s The Book Whisperer, and it made me rethink everything I did when it came to choice reading. Now, not only do I have far fewer students “fake reading” but I’ve had several students tell me that they’ve read their first book ever by themselves in my class.

While I’m still constantly on the lookout for better ways to help my students find books they love and develop a habit of reading, I’ve put together a toolbox of concrete ways to make choice reading work in my class.

5 TIPS TO GET STUDENTS REALLY READING

1. Make time for what’s important: One crucial understanding I gleaned from Miller is that real readers read every day. Of course I knew this from my own reading life, but somehow I had failed to realize that I was ignoring this essential fact when it came to my students. I meet with my students for 54 minutes every day, and every last second of instructional time is precious. But making the decision to give my students 10 to 15 minutes a day to read choice books was easy once I thought about my priorities for learning.

Without a love of reading and the opportunity to practice reading skills, nothing else in my curriculum matters, and choice reading every day is one of the most effective ways I’ve found to support students in developing these skills.

2. Give students ready access to books: There’s something powerful about having a good book immediately available to hand a student. I’m constantly on the lookout for books from yard sales, thrift stores, used bookstores, and student donations, but last year I discovered DonorsChoose.org, and it has vastly improved the health and appeal of my classroom collection of books.

I asked my students to list books they’d like to read on my classroom whiteboard and tapped into the young adult book recommendations of my teacher friends on social media. In less than half an hour, I set up a DonorsChoose project, and with a little bit of social media sharing and the help of some generous donors, I had boxes of crisp, new books for my students to open with great anticipation.

3. Make reading visible: Students don’t always see the reading that’s going on all around them, so I’ve made it my mission this year to make reading more immediately visible.

At the back of my room, there’s a whiteboard labeled “Books We’ve Read” that’s divided into four sections. There’s one each for the three periods of sophomores I teach, and one for the teachers—me, my student teacher, and the resource teacher who assists in one of my classes. Everyone adds the titles of books as they finish them.

Recently, a student from one of my two sections of AP English asked me why their class wasn’t up on the board. These more advanced classes don’t have as many struggling readers as my sophomore classes, but it’s just as important to celebrate reading with them, so I’ll be adding two more sections to my board.

At the start of each month, I take a picture of the previous month’s books and then clear the board to begin again. Students are getting a little competitive—even though I’ve told them we all win in this scenario—and they’re very interested in what my co-teachers and I are reading.

They’re also fascinated with a bulletin board in my room covered in pictures of educators on our campus holding some of their favorite books, from the shop teacher with his copy of Catcher in the Rye to the vice principal holding Stephen King’s Christine.

4. Talk about books: Another way to make students aware of the reading all around them is to talk about it in the classroom. In addition to regular book talks, I make it a habit every day to ask the class, “How many people finished a book last night?” and “How many people read their choice books yesterday?” Although I know this isn’t a scientific measure of growth in my classroom, it does give students a quick, daily opportunity to see the reading happening among their classmates, and it’s a reminder of how much we value reading.

I’ve also started conferencing individually with students about their reading. Before we start our daily reading, I ask students to tell me what page they’re on in their book. Since I write this down each day, I can quickly assess which students may want to discuss a book they’ve just finished and which students aren’t making much progress in their reading—we’ll discuss their thinking about their book, and if necessary I can suggest another that might better engage them.

I meet with approximately two to four students per day during our reading time. These discussions not only help students enjoy their reading more but also help me develop stronger relationships with them.

5. Be patient and relentless: The most valuable realization I’ve had in this decades-long endeavor to help my students learn to love reading is to just keep trying. There are so many brilliant teachers out there with so many good ideas for making things better in our classrooms, and if we stay connected and keep suggesting new books, talking about books, and trying different techniques—both new and old—our students will respond.

The 8 Multiple-Choice Question Types on the AP Literature Exam

If you're planning to take the AP English Literature and Composition exam, you'll need to get familiar with what to expect from the test. Whether the 2020 test date  is near or far, I’m here to help you get serious about preparing for the exam. In this guide I’ll go over the test's format and question types, how it's graded, best practices for preparation, and test day tips. You’ll be on your way to AP English Lit success in no time! Mr. Allen. 

AP English Literature: Exam Format and Question Types

The AP Literature Exam is a three-hour exam that contains two sections. First is an hour-long, 55-question multiple choice section, and then a two hour, three question free-response section. The exam tests your ability to analyze works and excerpts of literature and also cogently communicate that analysis in essay form. Read on for a breakdown of the two different sections and their question types.

Multiple Choice Section

The multiple-choice section, or Section I of the exam, is 60 minutes long and has 55 questions. You can expect to see 4-5 excerpts of prose and poetry. You will, in general, not be given an author, date, or title for these works, although occasionally the title of a poem is given. Unusual words are also sometimes defined for you.

The date ranges of works could fall from the 16th to the 21st century. Most works will be originally written in English, although you may occasionally see a passage in translation.

There are, generally speaking, eight kinds of questions you can expect to see on the AP English Literature and Composition test. I’ll break each of them down here and give you tips on how to identify and approach them.

The 8 Multiple-Choice Question Types on the AP Literature Exam

Without further ado, here are the eight question types you can expect to see on the AP lit exam. All questions are taken from the sample questions on the “AP Course and Exam Description.”

Reading Comprehension

These are questions that test your ability to understand what the passage is saying on a pretty basic level. They don’t require you to do a lot of interpretation—you just need to know what is actually going on. You can identify these from words and phrases like “according to,” “asserting,” “mentioned,” and so on. Basically, words that point to a fairly concrete register of meaning. You can succeed on these questions by careful reading of the text. You may have to go back and re-read parts to make sure you understand what the passage is saying.

Example:

 

Inference

These questions ask you to infer something—a character or narrator’s opinion, an author’s intention, and so forth—based on what is said in the passage. It will be something that isn’t stated directly or concretely, but that you can assume based on what is stated clearly in the passage. You can identify these questions from words like “infer,” and “imply.”  

The key to these questions is to not be tripped up by the fact that you are making an inference—there will be a best answer, and it will be the choice that is best supported by what is actually found in the passage. In many ways, inference questions are like second-level reading comprehension questions—you need to know not just what a passage says, but what it means.

Example:

Identifying and Interpreting Figurative Language

These are questions in which you have to either identify what word or phrase is figurative language or provide the meaning of a figurative phrase. You can identify these as they will either explicitly mention figurative language (or a figurative device like simile or metaphor) or will include a figurative language phrase in the question itself. The meaning of figurative language phrases can normally be determined by the phrase’s context in the passage—what is said around it? What is the phrase referring to?

Example 1: Identifying

Example 2: Interpreting

Literary Technique

These questions involve identifying why an author does what they do: from using a particular phrase to repeating certain words. Basically, what techniques is the author using to construct the passage/poem and to what effect? You can identify these questions by words like “serves chiefly to,” “effect,” “evoke,” and “in order to.” A good way to approach these questions is to ask yourself, so what? Why did the author use these particular words or this particular structure?

Example:

 

Character Analysis

These questions will ask you to describe something about a character. You can spot them because they will refer directly to characters’ attitudes, opinions, beliefs, or relationships with other characters. This is, in many ways, a special kind of inference question since you are inferring the broader personality of the character based on the evidence in a passage. Also, these crop up much more commonly for prose passages than poetry ones.

Example:

  

Overall Passage Questions

Some questions will ask you to identify or describe something about the passage/poem as a whole: its purpose, tone, genre, etc. You can identify these by phrases like “in the passage,” and “as a whole.” To answer these questions, you need to think about the excerpt with a bird’s-eye view. What is the overall picture created by all the tiny details?

Example:

 

Structure

Some questions will ask you about specific structural elements of the passage—a shift in tone, a digression, the specific form of a poem, etc. Often these questions will specify a part of the passage/poem and ask you to identify what that part is accomplishing. Being able to identify and understand the significance of any shifts—structural, tonal, in genre, etc—will be of key importance for these questions.

Example:

 Grammar/Nuts & Bolts

Very occasionally you will be asked a specific grammar question, such as what word an adjective is modifying. I would also include in this category very specific questions like the meter of a poem (i.e. iambic pentameter). These questions are less about the literary artistry and more about the fairly dry technique involved in having a fluent command of the English language.

Example:

That covers the 8 question types!

Quotes we should live by...

How to Write an Essay - Basic Essay Structure in 3 Minutes