What's the Purpose of Education?

In this two-session course, we invite participants, especially educators, to embark on an exploration of the question: "What is the true purpose of education?" Throughout our facilitated conversation, we will dig into the dual potential of education as a liberating force and a tool of oppression, guided by key insights from renowned educational theorists and philosophers.

We invite you to grapple with the philosophical questions that underlie our understanding of the value and purpose of education. How can education serve societal ends, and when does it become an end in itself? What content should be prioritized, and how should it be delivered? How do power dynamics between teachers and learners shape the educational process? And crucially, how does education intersect with social and political issues?

As we delve into these critical questions, we will also explore how education can maintain cultural heritage and act as a powerful force to reshape societal inequities. We will question the capacity of public education in particular to both liberate and oppress.

Readings for this Course:

1. Excerpts from "Pedagogy of the Oppressed" by Paulo Freire: A seminal work critiquing traditional pedagogical methods, Freire emphasizes the potential of education as a means of societal transformation or as a tool for perpetuating oppression.
2. Essays from "Teaching to Transgress" by bell hooks: hooks posits education as a practice of freedom, illuminating the transformative power of learning and the importance of critical consciousness in challenging oppressive systems.
3. Excerpts from "Landscapes of Learning" by Maxine Greene: Through her incisive insights, Greene invites us to consider how education can nurture imagination, consciousness, and empathy, crucial aspects in fostering individual liberation and societal change.
4. Essay: "The Crisis in Education" by Hannah Arendt: Arendt's essay prompts reflection on the balance between tradition and the potential of education to reshape societal inequities.

Questions We'll Discuss:

1. How can education function as both a means to societal ends and an end in itself?
2. In what ways can education serve as a tool for liberation and/or oppression? How does this relate to the dynamics between teachers and learners?
3. How does education uphold cultural heritage while acting as a force to reshape societal inequities? What role do curricula and teaching methods play in this?
4. What constitutes knowledge in our society, and how does this influence the content and delivery of education?
5. How do the works of Freire, hooks, Greene, and Arendt inform our understanding of these tensions and potentials in education? How can their insights help us reimagine education as a force for societal transformation?