"The dialogical character of education as the practice of freedom does not begin when the teacher-student meets with the students-teachers in pedagogical situation, but rather when the former first asks herself or himself what she or he will dialogue with the latter about."

Paulo Freire Education See all quotes by Paulo Freire →

React to this quote

More by Paulo Freire

“To simply think about the people, as the dominators do, without any self-giving in that thought, to fail to think with the people, is a sure way to cease being revolutionary leaders.”

“Scientific and humanist revolutionary leaders, on the other hand, cannot believe in the myth of the ignorance of the people.”

“The behavior of the oppressed is a prescribed behavior, following as it does the guidelines of the oppressor.”

“For people, 'here' signifies not merely a physical space, but also an historical space.”

“For cultural invasion to succeed, it is essential that those invaded become convinced of their intrinsic inferiority.”

“Certain members of the oppressor class join the oppressed in their struggle for liberation.”

Resonant Thoughts

"In order to understand what kind of behaviors classrooms promote, one must become accustomed to observing what, in fact, students actually do in them. What students do in a classroom is what they lear…"

— Neil Postman

Literature1931–2003

#knowledge

"I write repeatedly—against my will—of those things I fear most happening. Losing a loved one, losing a parent, losing a child. I'm in terror of losing a child. It's never happened to me, but I am clea…"

— John Irving

Literature1942

#education

"Yet the Nazi Students’ League was not without competition in the student world at this time. Many students joined the stormtroopers in the spring of 1933, and following Hitler’s instruction in Septemb…"

— Richard J. Evans

Literature1947

#time

"Have I ever remarked on how completely ridiculous it is to ask high school students to decide what they want to do with the rest of their lives and give them nearly no support in doing so? Support lik…"

— Eliezer Yudkowsky

Literature1979

#education