Banking model of education () is a term coined by

Paulo Freire Paulo Reglus Neves Freire (19 September 1921 – 2 May 1997) was a Brazilian educator and philosopher whose work revolutionized global thought on education. He is best known for ''Pedagogy of the Oppressed'', in which he reimagines teaching ...

to describe and critique the established education system in his book '' Pedagogy of the Oppressed''. The name refers to the

metaphor A metaphor is a figure of speech that, for rhetorical effect, directly refers to one thing by mentioning another. It may provide, or obscure, clarity or identify hidden similarities between two different ideas. Metaphors are usually meant to cr ...

of students as containers into which educators must put knowledge. Freire argued that this model reinforces a lack of

critical thinking Critical thinking is the process of analyzing available facts, evidence, observations, and arguments to make sound conclusions or informed choices. It involves recognizing underlying assumptions, providing justifications for ideas and actions, ...

and knowledge ownership in students, which in turn reinforces

oppression Oppression is malicious or unjust treatment of, or exercise of power over, a group of individuals, often in the form of governmental authority. Oppression may be overt or covert, depending on how it is practiced. No universally accepted model ...

, in contrast to Freire's understanding of

knowledge Knowledge is an Declarative knowledge, awareness of facts, a Knowledge by acquaintance, familiarity with individuals and situations, or a Procedural knowledge, practical skill. Knowledge of facts, also called propositional knowledge, is oft ...

as the result of a human, creative process.

Definition

The term ''banking model of education'' was first used by

in his highly influential book '' Pedagogy of the Oppressed''. Freire describes this form of education as "fundamentally ''narrative'' (in) character" with the teacher as the subject (that is, the active participant) and the students as passive objects.

Instead of communicating, the teacher issues communiqués and makes deposits which the students patiently receive, memorize, and repeat. This is the "banking" concept of education, in which the scope of action allowed to students extends only as far as receiving, filing, and storing the deposits.

Education is thus seen as a process of depositing knowledge into passive students. Teachers are the epistemological authority in this system; students' pre-existing knowledge is ignored, aside from what was expected to be 'deposited' into them earlier. Freire also refers to a banking paradigm as regarding students to be "adaptable, manageable beings. ... The more completely they accept the passive role imposed on them, the more they tend simply to adapt to the world as it is and to the fragmented view of reality deposited in them."

In the banking concept of education, knowledge is a gift bestowed by those who consider themselves knowledgeable upon those whom they consider to know nothing. ... The teacher presents himself to his students as their necessary opposite; by considering their ignorance absolute, he justifies his own existence.

Transmission model

Banking education follows the ''transmission model'' of education. This model views education as a specific body of knowledge that is transmitted from the teacher to the student. It emphasizes teacher-centric learning where students are passive absorbers of information and that the purpose of learning is memorization of facts. The transmission model is most often used in university settings as lectures. When there is a class of over 100 students the easiest method of education is through

lecture A lecture (from ) is an oral presentation intended to present information or teach people about a particular subject, for example by a university or college teacher. Lectures are used to convey critical information, history, background, theo ...

where the teacher stands at the front of the class and dictates to the students.

Possible alternative

One possible alternative to the banking model is the

problem-based learning Problem-based learning (PBL) is a teaching method in which students learn about a subject through the experience of solving an open-ended problem found in trigger material. The PBL process does not focus on problem solving with a defined solution ...

model (similar to what Freire called ''

problem-posing education Problem-posing education, coined by the Brazilian educator Paulo Freire in his 1970 book '' Pedagogy of the Oppressed'', is a method of teaching that emphasizes critical thinking for the purpose of liberation. Freire used problem posing as an alter ...

''), in which students are encouraged to think and actively solve problems presented to them by the teacher. This model views the student as a person with prior knowledge that may be capitalized upon to reach greater results than a banking model that fails to take advantage of this capital.

References

{{Authority control Pedagogy Critical pedagogy

Definition

Transmission model

Possible alternative

See also

References