What is the banking model to Friere? Who does it empower or disempower, and at whose expense? Do you have any experience with this model? If so, describe an encounter that you have had with the banking model and reflect on it, both positives and negatives.
The banking model is based off what Paulo Friere believes to be the traditional education system, in which the teacher “deposits” information into the students mind to simply memorize to later on spit right back. Freire believes that in this education system students are not truly learning as they are not allowed to actually think. The Banking model ultimately empowers the teachers and those in charge of the curriculum as they have complete power to “deposit” anything into the students brain whether it be fake or actual factual information.
I have had many experiences with this model throughout most of my my life. In elementary school we expected to memorize in preparation for the New York State Exams. In Middle school and High school we were again expected to memorize rather than learn for our regents, mid-terms, and finals. Personally the banking model has had both positive and negative effects in that in my math class memorizing the steps to solve specific problems and repeating them over and over again played an important and effective role in studying for an exam. The down sides to this model is that once the information is not needed the brain seems to depose the information which happens every year once the school year ends.
