Education: creativeness and “banking” concept

Education may rightly be called a necessary element of a person’s upbringing. Mankind, starting with ancient philosophers has always been paying great attention to education, as it helps to form a true person, whose intellect and cultural development different him or her from other animals. The methods of education are not constant – they are changing, every time and everywhere. Some of education strategies promote individuals’ development while others simply interrupt it. I completely agree with Paulo Freire’s ideas about the “banking” concept and share his views on the modern educational system on the whole.

According to Freire, the relationship between students and teachers has a narrative character. Teachers talk about the reality, as it is constant, predictable, and motionless without relations to students’ experience. It only makes students memorize some facts and statements without interest and involving in the process of studying (Freire 1).  This method of teaching makes students become “containers” and “receptacles”, which are filled by the teacher. The teacher is more respectable, if he (she) fills students with a great amount of information, which is not always interesting and useful; the best student is the student, better filled with boring standardized facts. I agree with Freire’s opinion because I have felt it on my own skin. In the primary and secondary school my teachers were using the “banking” system.  This method is killing personality in human, disturbs from creative development and critical consciousness. The teachers often press the students with their authority and treat pupils without respect and trust. Some educators even manage to present interesting information in a very boring and tiring way. When the teacher was explaining something, I did not feel myself as a participator of studying process - I have heard some phrases and wrote some sentences, nothing more. The teacher was not an enemy for me, but he also failed to become a wise advisor.  He did his job, he was acting according to special instructions and programs of the Government. He was emotionally involved and interested neither in our studying, nor in the information, he was presenting.

The teacher is demonstrated as a person, whose knowledge is excellent and who supposes the students to be ignorant, justifying his existing. As Paulo Freire mentions, the educational process must be started with the solution of the contradiction between teachers and students. The teacher should not be treated as a teaching subject and students like objects. Both students and teachers always teach each other, giving unique experience and emotions. Some teachers use the professional authority, which is not just in attitude towards students, as they need freedom. Some teachers, who have been teaching for numerous decades are arrogant, they surely to consider their knowledge and methods to be perfect and modern. Unfortunately, they teach the students of the twenty-first century as if they are the students of the 70-ies or 80-ies.  These ways are not productive and inspiring – such a teacher treats the students as if they own something to him (her), I am convinced. Good attitude towards the students, equal importance of both parts of educating are very valuable. I have made sure, if the attempt to create a dialog failed, the communication becomes difficult for both. The teacher, who is shouting at the students, reminding them about their poor knowledge and not developed intellectual abilities is never loved and respected.

The main fault if the “banking” concept is the absence of critical reception.  If the students are depositories, they do not develop critical thinking, which makes them to adapt the world without the desire to transform it. In case they agree the passive role, imposed to them, the more they are likely to become the viewers, not participators.  The oppressors, who are aimed to provide the banking education are not interested in students’ creative power – they do not want a situation to be changed and transform, as such system serves the interests of the oppressors. Sometimes it seems that the educational system does not promote the person’s developing. My former classmate had to go to school all the summer because he missed one point to get B. He could spend the summer reading books and developing, but he went to school every day and learnt something, he hated.

It may be noticed, that no one is interested in alive teaching,  giving to student a feeling of joy and exciting. The studying process is slowly dying and modern educational system is its ill body. I think, we need good doctors in order not to look for a pathoanatomist. My experience in educating can not be called rejoicing, but this experience has become my best teacher. According to Erich Fromm, people are divided into biophilious and necrophilious: “The necrophilious person loves all that does not grow…Memory, rather than experience, having, rather than being, is what counts…He loves control, and in the act of controlling he kills life” (Fromm 41).  

A better variant of the educational system, problem-posing, transforms the students-listeners into co-investigators. Students are involved in cognitive dialogue with the teacher, reflecting on the studied objects, critically analyzing the reality and expressing their own opinion.  Thus, boring studying becomes a creative process, getting the level of logos. Other people and surroundings should be considered not as abstract separated from the world objects, but in their relations to the world. Students should re-evaluate and re-consider their existing in the world and the world’s existence, reflect on these concepts instead of mechanical perceiving them.   

Having analyzed modern society, I begin to notice that nobody wants people to be really intelligent and educated, as it is difficult to control a personality - the task is to make people perceive information without critical analysis. Of course, I was fortunate to meet the teachers, who taught their students to think critically, to solve the problems in a different, creative way.  For example, the young school teacher of biology never pressed us, told us funny stories in order we could have a few-minutes rest, discussed the problems of modern society and gave us some candies. The teacher of the literature taught me to read great poetry and prose, to understand the power of words. Thanks to these people I have discovered poetry and philosophy – they really changed my life.

Ray Bradbury wrote: “I spent three days a week for 10 years educating myself in the public library, and it's better than college. People should educate themselves - you can get a complete education for no money. At the end of 10 years, I had read every book in the library and I'd written a thousand stories”. I realize that the educational system is very important and it is hard to meet a person, who did not attend school or University. I think, the most considerable aim of education is teaching people to learn by themselves. The educational system leads to discipline and order, it helps to simplify the knowledge and to break it into categories. It also provides socialization, especially to primary students. Nevertheless, self-education is a perfect way of educating because this person is both the teacher and a student at the same time. I suppose, the best teacher is someone, who showed a person how to study without advisors, independently from the educational system and its faults.

To conclude with, Friere formed a concept of “banking” system and its opposition – problem-posing education.  Unfortunately, “banking” education is more spread, though there are some exceptions. I think, Freire’s ideas are worth paying attention in order to improve the current educational system and the quality of education.

About the author: Olivia Pinto is a freelance writer and an administrator of the website https://essay-helpwriting.org/. In her spare time she visits new places and goes in for sports.