An Appraisal of Paulo Freire’s Critical Pedagogy and Its Impact in the Nigerian Education System

Abstract

It is believed that enlightenment and learning should ordinarily better the fortunes of individuals and the society at large. Thinkers and educationist have over the years shown a consistent belief in similar assumption. On this, Paulo Freire, while condemning the traditional education system, proposes what he calls a critical pedagogy. This model of learning, according to him, awakens in learners and the oppressed class, a critical and political consciousness for their emancipation and ultimate humanization. Employing the tools of philosophical analysis, this article looks at the trajectories and philosophical possibilities of Freire’s critical pedagogy and the prospects this revolutionary model of learning portends in the Nigerian setting. It further argues that Freire’s elevation of even new learners to the cognitive level of experienced teachers appears to be an over stretched assumption; whose application could only be possible at an andragogical level; and only at this level can it find an effective space in the Nigeria setting.