Critical Reflection of Theories of Education (Term Paper Sample)

Transformative and Critical Perspectives
Theories of Education
A Reflection Paper
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Due Date: DATE \@ "d MMMM yyyy" 24 October 2015
Transformative and Critical Perspectives/Theories of Education: A Reflection Paper
Focusing on the transformative and critical perspectives of education, the paper provides a brief and succinct reflection of the two theoretical approaches to learning, comparatively. Mezirow pioneered the transformational learning approach in 1975 (and subsequently in 1978), when reviewing adult education, asserting that people make or develop meaning of the world from and or through their experiences (Cranton & King, 2003). Soon thereafter, Freire proposed the critical pedagogy where education is conceived as critical learning modeled to empower the poor, abused, illiterate, and exploited populations to challenge the norms and inspire positive social change. This paper reviews the core elements of both of these approaches in practice and application, compares them, ultimately terminating with a conclusion on the experiences of the present scholar during practice, and as it emerged, within the constraints of ethical conduct as an educator.
To begin with, several scholars have proposed significant hypotheses on the transformative learning perspective. Specializing in adult education, Merriam, Caffarella and Baumgartner (2007) reviews Mezirow’s 10-phase Psychocritical approach to transformative leaning. According to the scholars, Mezirow’s Psychocritical approach has prompted immense research and scholarship on transformative leaning, pioneering in contextualizing transformative leaning with a step-by-step/phased understanding beginning with (a) experience, followed by (b) critical reflection, through (c) reflective discourse and ultimately terminating in (d) action (Merriam, Caffarella, & Baumgartner, 2007). What Mezirow proposes is a transformative process of learning where learners necessarily reflects on their experiences, interacts with others from a specific worldview, gains increased competence to make the best possible judgments, and ultimately justifies the influential template from which to act though with from a more developed understanding/perspective (Merriam, Caffarella, & Baumgartner, 2007, p. 137).
In agreement, Merriam, Caffarella and Baumgartner (2007) provide an illustrative case study of how transformative learning changed the priorities of Geri, whose cancer diagnosis changed Geri perspective from material possessions (size and location of a house, a dream car and a career as a partner in a law firm) to valuing the role of friends and family. For Geri, the experience of the realities emerged from cancer diagnosis, triggering critical reflection of what she valued more in life, reflecting on her priorities so far, opting to act from the new understanding. Geri exemplifies transformational learning that progresses from experience, through reflection to a changed approach when acting (Merriam, Caffarella, & Baumgartner, 2007, p. 130). A similar argument can also be deduced from transformation learning from a philosophical socio-cultural approach as proposed by Freire in Brazil. While Mezirow reviewed the personal transformational learning of "white, middle-class women," Freire reviewed transformational learning as the antigen of "radical social change" within a "context of poverty, illiteracy, and oppression" (Merriam, Caffarella, & Baumgartner, 2007, p. 140). Yet while differing in the operationalization of their theories, Mezirow and Freire concur in the progressive process of experience, exploration, reflection, and action as a person’s of society’s worldview/perspective changes with continued enlightenment.
Derivatively, the foregoing understanding of transformational learning as proposed by Merriam, Caffarella, and Baumgartner (2007) provokes a consideration of the roles of the learners and educators in the transformative learning process. According to Cranton and King (2003), the transformative approach requires educators to "understand what they do and why they do it, … to incorporate activities that foster content, process, and premise reflection" (p. 34). Modern educators’ role is to inspire their learners to experience, critically reflect and acknowledge newer and more-informed decisions that shape their social, political and economic actions "through practice and modeling" (p. 35). The learners on the other hand, approach the transformational learning process with an active self-developed role. According to Cranton and King (2003), the core role of learners is critical reflection of the experience and the "application of their learning" to real-life contexts (p. 36).
Contemporary theories, approaches, and perspectives on learning have also proposed critical learning model. Magro (2001) reviews Freire’s critical pedagogy where education is conceived as a "critique of education authoritarianism a commitment to challenge inequality and injustice at all levels" (p. 87). While Mezirow conceived transformational learning as a personal development, Freire proposed critical learning that empowers the poor, abused, illiterate, and exploited populations to challenge the norms and inspire social change. Foley (2001) asserts that adult education in contemporary contexts needs to embrace "self-directed learning, facilitation, democratic pedagogy, learning in hegemonic struggle, learning in social action, critical pedagogy" in a manner that enables learners to positively transform their societies (p. 71). Freire’s transformation enables and empowers individuals to question the norm, validate contemporary knowledge, reflect on traditional premises, and initiate positive social change. Indeed, Pratt (2002) concurs that educators and learners are directed to "reflect critically on the underlying assumptions and values that give direction and justification to their work" (p. 14), where critical learning denotes learning as a "means of promoting critical thinking" (p. 6). A critical learning educator enables and encoura...