McLaren, P. Critical Pedagogy: A Look at the Major Concepts (pp.60-72)

1.) What is hegemony? The dictionary defines hegemony as leadership or dominance, especially by one country or social group over another. Peter McLaren describes hegemony in the reading as "a struggle in which the powerful win the consent of those who are oppressed, with the oppressed unknowingly participating on their oppression".

2.) In the reading, McLaren outlines traits of what he describes as a critical educator. A critical educator is one who is does not feel it is necessary to explore all realms of education. Critical educators do not consider the possibility of more than one solution to a problem. From the reading, we can infer that critical educators are hegemonic in their teachings. I agree with this idea. The mandatory curriculum for impressionable young students is closely correlated to the demands of society. For example, it is mandatory for students to learn how to use mathematical and scientific formulas. Students are taught that they will need this to apply to life in the real world if they want any chance of being successful. Students are taught that in order to be successful, you must follow the coursework that is created with the intent of being hegemonic. Once these students graduate they are sent off in the real world with no real concept of what it takes to truly be successful. I wish when I was a student money management was part of the curriculum, We spent so much time doing math I did not use and eventually forgot. As a broke, 18 year old college freshman, money management and accounting skills would have been more useful and more practical for my everyday life. These critical educators do not teach students how to think on a wider scale, it teaches students to follow orders. Critical educators are teaching the students they will be liberated by the knowledge they obtain, while controlling the knowledge that is distributed. As a result, students are confused with intertwined thoughts of domination and liberation.

3.) Is the curriculum as imperative to success as critical educators portray it to be? How may of the macro points do we utilize in our everyday lives in comparison to the micro points? How do we balance the curriculum to reflect liberation as opposed to domination?