Education Can End Systematic Oppression Essay -- Poverty and Oppressio

The subject of expectations for higher education is one that tends to spark impassioned debate among educators, students and parents alike. In Pedagogy of the Oppressed Paulo Freire presses his audience to consider such expectations in light of one’s own intentions, motives, and affections toward those to be educated (Freire 50). He goes even further to suggest that a love for one another through empathetic dialogue, especially on the part of the educator, must be present in order for fear to be wiped away and liberation to eventually take its place (Freire 89,90). It was that dialogical approach that made Freire’s literacy programs so successful in Brazil until â€Å"his work was interrupted by a military dictatorship† in the mid-60s and he was arrested and exiled to Chile (Palmer 128). Even after his release he continued to be an advocate for his approach to education, believing it worked toward liberation for all, freeing both the oppressor and the oppressed (Palmer 129). Some of the oppressed in our own society include, but are not limited to, individuals living in poverty, immigrants struggling to adapt and grow in a new culture, and people with developmental disabilities due to abuse and neglect. Many opportunities lie at our fingertips in America but until we apply an empathetic approach to reaching the oppressed in our society, we cannot expect all Americans to seek a college degree nor will education be a means toward societal change. According to the US Census Bureau, out of the 300 plus million people living in the United States, 46.5 million of them lived in poverty in 2012 without any change from the previous year (â€Å"Dept of Commerce†). Almost 22% of the people were children under the age of 18 (â€Å"Dept of Commerce†). A... ...riere_pedagogy.pdf>. Hamilton, Jon. "Orphans' Lonely Beginnings Reveal How Parents Shape A Child's Brain." NPR. NPR, 24 Feb. 2014. Web. 26 Feb. 2014. . Koury, Amanda S., and Elizabeth Votruba-Drzal. "School Readiness of Children from Immigrant Families: Contributions of Region of Origin, Home, and Childcare." Journal of Educational Psychology 106.1 (2014): 268-88. ProQuest. Web. 24 Feb. 2014. Palmer, Joy, David E. Cooper, and Liora Bresler, eds. Fifty Modern Thinkers on Education: From Piaget to the Present Day. London: Routledge, 2001. Print. "WHAT RESEARCH SAYS ABOUT PARENT INVOLVEMENT IN CHILDREN’S EDUCATION." SOM - State of Michigan. Michigan Department of Education, Mar. 2002. Web. 24 Feb. 2014. .