Paulo Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed, Student-Centered Learning, and Post-Colonial Identity

Abstract

Student-centered learning has been treated as a Western export to the rest of the world. Yet the concept has diverse meanings. Educational theorists associate it with meeting the needs of pupils and social justice orientations. On the other hand, it has been used as a jingoistic advertisement for practices which can be seen to lead to devaluation of the educational profession, and bolstering of the view of student as consumer. This essay disentangles these views and exposes some limitations of the ideal of student-centered learning. To add context, it considers the case of the United Arab Emirates, an extreme example of what can happen when students’ interests are prioritized above all. Finally, the paper considers how the concept can be revised to be useful in diverse contexts.