September 6, 2024 – Oregon Association of Scholars: X Post
The Oregon Education Investment Board’s Equity Lens, which is referenced by @ORDeptEd as guiding “intentional investments we will make to reach our goals of an equitable educational system” invokes being “culturally responsive” as a key element.
This refers to, as they cite, Gloria Ladson-Billings’ concept of culturally relevant teaching. This concept invokes Paulo Freire’s concept of “conscientization” or raising critical consciousness. Paulo Freire was a Marxist radical who “contributed a philosophy of education which blended classical approaches stemming from Plato and modern Marxist, post-Marxist, and anti-colonialist thinkers.” en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paulo_Fre…
For Ladson-Billings culturally relevant teaching means “students must develop a broader sociopolitical consciousness that allows them to critique the cultural norms, values, mores, and institutions that produce and maintain social inequities.”
Freire specified that “Cultural action for conscientization is always a utopian enterprise.”
These are not theories that are focused on developing the practical skills and knowledge that we expect from public schools. They are inherently political and utopian ideologies that draw back to Marxist philosophy. There is no functional reason for them to be a part of the framework for public education or informing education investment strategies.
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