Freire`s banking concept is a brief about the relationship between teachers and students. As we all have been a student at some point in our life, but the difference between a scholar student and an average student is the teacher and the technique used by that particular teacher. The Banking Concept of Education states that knowledge is a gift earned by people who consider themselves knowledgeable. It also states that the old-school way of teachers teaching and students learning is outdated. In this concept, Paulo Freire brings ahead the main point i.e. the relationship between teachers and students and also the way in which teaching is taking place. He is raising awareness about the way the students are being taught. He feels that the way students are being trained isn`t as effective as it should be. He explained in this concept that the teachers are depositing the information into the student's minds instead of making them understand and learn the concepts so that they can implement those facts in the real world. The students are not able to relate what is being taught to them with themselves thus not able to retain the information in their minds. Basically, teachers are making the students test-ready only but they should rather make the students ready for their life ahead of them.
His belief is that the teachers should not only teach the students but they and the students should walk through the learning techniques collectively which will eliminate the difference between the teachers and the students.
The “Banking” concept
In the text, he mentioned that From the outset, her efforts must coincide with those of students to engage in critical thinking and the quest for mutual humanization. His efforts must be imbued with a profound trust in people and their creative power. To achieve this, they must be partners of the students in their relationships with them. (Freire, 2011)
He insists on the fact that the students and teachers should be working together to challenge one another but how it has been that the teachers are challenging the students only. When the students and the teachers work together they educate each other which helps them to advance their knowledge and learning. There is no doubt that teachers know a lot and they also hold up a large amount of information but they can`t know everything and if they are working together with the students, they might learn something from them as well.
He also mentioned in the text that students, as they are increasingly posed with problems relating to themselves in the world and with the world, will feel increasingly challenged and obliged to respond to that challenge. Because they apprehend the challenge as interrelated to other problems within the total context, not as a theoretical question, the resulting comprehension tends to be increasingly critical and thus constantly less alienated. This response to the challenge evokes new challenges, followed by new understandings; and gradually the students come to regard themselves as committed. (Freire, 2011)
This paragraph from his text proves that if we want the students to be involved in the learning process, the best option for them would be to participate actively but they will only participate if and only if the learning to related to them in a respective sort of way otherwise they will lose their interest and will not be interested to learn the things which are not related to them. The students only want to learn only those things which are related to them or apply to them.
In relation to Higher education
In the text he also mentioned the students, alienated like the slave in the Hegelian dialect, accept their ignorance as justifying the teacher`s existence- but unlike the slave, they never discover that they educate the teacher. (Freire, 2011)
The students usually when they are treated as slaves, are not encouraged to participate in a conversation actively which is a sheer waste of their education. If the students are not asking questions and they are just accepting whatever the teacher is teaching this means that they are not challenging either the teacher as well as themselves.
So basically this is what is happening nowadays in the context of Higher Education. The way teachers are teaching has advanced if we compare it to a time probably 10 years ago.
This concept describes an innovative way of teaching in which students are allowed to work as critical thinkers along with their teachers. The preference for international students is changing to other countries because of the cost of education which is comparatively higher as compared to other countries. The students who are from lower and middle-income class families cannot afford to study.
Along with this, the teaching and learning techniques used are quite flexible as the Banking Concept is an integrated educational system. Nowadays, students have full flexibility about the courses they want to study and the way they want to study that particular course. educational system initiated the development of analytical thinking skills by forcing the student to take part actively in the conversation. The tutors are also encouraging the students to share their ideas and participate actively in debates, group discussions, online seminars, and so on. This is exactly what Freire wanted the big institutions to implement in their educational system.
Moreover, to rate of active participation by the students can be increased by providing a helping environment to the students so they can think out of the box and participate actively in various discussions in the class. Freire`s concept proposed that a student can truly learn if the teacher is involving both parties in active questioning, discussions, and sharing ideas on one platform. These attributes can be seen in higher education as these are supportive for students as this can will make them capable to use their ideas and thoughts which will make the learning process much easier for the students. The education system is a problem-posing education system as it gives the power to get in-depth knowledge of each and every module in the respective universities.
For example, The teaching techniques used at the University of Birmingham are really relatable to Freire`s Banking Concept as most of the content is usually delivered by an active physical researcher. The learning material (notes, slides, and recordings) of a particular course is always available in the virtual learning environment of each and every student which is really helpful for the students as they can review everything at a later time and if they have any questions, the tutors are always available to be contacted either by their emails or office hours. Tutors in that university are happy to help the students even after the lecture or at a combined convenient time.
During their time at the University of Birmingham, the students have a personal tutor with which they can meet once or twice a week to discuss the problems they might have during the regular lectures. This opportunity is really beneficial for the students as they can discuss the problems with the tutor that they had in the previous lectures altogether.
So basically, what Freire said was that teachers and students should be working together to let the students learn in a better and more efficient way. As he claims that the teachers should play the role of depositors and students as receptors, that is what education is focused on these days. The system has a way of involving the students in every module and throughout the study time. Universities nowadays have different ways to let the students learn and they also come up with different ways in which whatever the tutor is teaching, the student is relating him or herself with the topics the way it is being taught.
Conclusion
So basically Freire came up with the “Banking Concept” thinking of it as a schism between a person (either teacher or student) and the real world which will be resulting in getting that person ready for tackling the real world. The future of the human race is totally dependent on the educated individuals of the future and also the way in which they have been educated. So to save the future of the human race we have to focus our attention on the present students. In this concept, that is what Freire has tried to explain how can the students of today save the world in the future.
To do that the teacher and student should act one. The higher education system is a good example of the concept as the tutors here are helping the students to be ready for tomorrow.
Right now the high rate of international students coming points to the fact that the first choice of international students now is not any other part of the world. The experiences shared by the students define that the teachers are really helping especially the international students with everything related to studies or even life outside of their respective universities.
The teachers are providing more factual knowledge to the students so that they can easily learn the information given to them. The teachers also are helping international students if they are facing a problem due to cultural differences. From my personal experience, tutors are going far and beyond to help each and every student as much as they can. The universities have provided different tools to get help from like there is a student center which helps the student with day-to-day problems, some universities have provided personal tutors to certain students put together in a group and on top of all tutors have given their personal information to all the students so that they can reach them at any point of the day.
All these options are really helpful to international students. So higher education has been the first preference of international students because of the above-mentioned reasons and it is really helpful in many ways to the students coming from different parts of the world for their higher education.
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