Course Details

You’ve likely heard some variation of the phrases, “Knowledge is power” or “Education can set us free,” but what constitutes education? What knowledge is deemed worthy or valid in our schools? A critical examination of U.S. education throughout history—Indian Boarding Schools, land grant schools, segregation, unequal resource distribution, and the school-to-prison pipeline—tell a story of state violence, control, capitalism, and settler colonialism. Yet, educational attainment continues to be a predictor of individuals emotional well being, financial stability, and risk of incarceration.  Education has also been vital to resistance movements throughout history, and college campuses are frequently sites for social change. What distinguishes education that oppresses from that which liberates? What is the role of education in individual and community liberation? How do power and privilege impact student experiences in the classroom? In this class, we will explore these questions and more — examining the relationships between education, power, and liberation. 

Students will read Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed, excerpts from Teaching to Transgress, and other sources surrounding critical race theory, abolition, and community cultural wealth. We will learn from each other through classroom dialogue, weekly reflection, and student-led projects. Additionally, students in this course will have the opportunity to engage in experiential learning through a collaboration with the Freedom Education Project Puget Sound, an education nonprofit out of the Washington Correction Center for Women.