Franz Giuseppe Cortez

This paper explores the thoughts of Paulo Freire regarding the use of violence to attain social transformation. Contrary to some commentators, I argue that Freire’s take on the role of armed struggle has taken a developmental mode. He has moved from a reformist to a revolutionary to a more critical stance. In other words, there is a movement of the overcoming of violence. The starting point of this evolution of his educational and political thinking is mainly reflected in his first book Education as the Practice of Freedom where he was convinced that social transformation follows smoothly from a “conscientized” populace. The next turning point is expressed in the pages of Pedagogy of the Oppressed where he was radical in saying that reality is not changed by changing the consciousness but by deliberately acting to change that reality. It implies further that the use of violence cannot be discarded as a remote possibility. Finally, the overcoming of violence is lucidly manifested in Learning to Question, where Freire contends that social transformation is not only gained by taking of power of the state because power permeates in the diverse elements of the state itself. In other words, power is located in small and probably, unexpected spaces. The critical educator must be sensitive enough to locate, recognize, communicate, and grab those cracks and openings.

This paper revisits the main thoughts of the Filipino historian and social critic Renato Constantino on the role of education in the formation of a neocolonial and postcolonial consciousness. It suggests that Constantino’s critical stance towards education embodies a type of philosophizing about education that centers on the problematization of the language of instruction, on the rendering of voice to those in the margins of Philippine society, and on taking a critical stance about education itself. It suggests further that this form of philosophizing about education and its instrumentalities is prospective of a Freirean liberating pedagogy that is inherently nonneutral, critical, dialogical, praxical, and transformative.

This paper explores what I would call as the “linguistic turn” of Roque Ferriols, a prominent Filipino philosophy luminary. Following Paulo Freire’s notion of the non-neutrality of education, I will argue that Ferriols’ linguistic turn can also be read as a political act. Even if he does not have a sustained analysis of the politics of language, there are interspersed texts showing that he is deliberately and consciously involved in the process of critique and problematization of colonial discourse and elitist mentality. Thus, when he is alternatively seen as a participant in a wider discourse of linguistic politics, the readers of Ferriols become more aware of the liberating motive and potential behind his choice of Filipino for philosophizing and for teaching philosophy.

This paper argues that the tradition of Critical Pedagogy can deepen and sharpen our understanding of critical thinking as one of the manifest aims of the new Philippine educational system. Thus, it is a critical rethinking of critical thinking. The paper discusses first Critical Pedagogy. It further explains critical thinking as one of the manifest aims of education. Then, it reveals the underlying principle of this dominant understanding of critical thinking. Using the perspectives of Critical Pedagogy, the paper explains that critical thinking cannot be restricted to a one-dimensional meaning of simply being a set of logical and cognitive skills. Inherent to critical thinking is its political and social dimension.

Various scholars have developed approaches to business ethics. In the secular sphere, the approaches include utilitarianism, deontology, virtue, care, contractarianism, and stakeholder, among others. In the religious sphere, scholars explore what the major religions of the world have to say regarding the conduct of business. Thus, we encounter literatures on Hindu, Buddhist, Christian, Jewish, Arab, and Confucian approaches to business ethics. In this paper, I will talk about a relatively new approach called Critical Business Ethics. This approach is mainly an attempt to bring Critical Theory of the Frankfurt School, structuralism, post-structuralism, and postmodernism among others, into the field of business ethics. However, it must not be seen as the approach to end all approaches but another way of looking at ethics and the conduct of business. In other words, the traditional approaches have already contributed a lot since the birthing of business ethics. The time is ripe to continue the march of reason and to not let business ethics be stunted or ossified. I think that even if there were difficulties that a critical approach would confront, it would always remain a worthwhile endeavor. Thus, those who will teach Business Ethics and Social Responsibility must create opportunities and look for small pockets and openings when and where an alternative approach may thrive.

This paper is mainly a provisional survey of the engagement of the Filipinos with the thoughts of Paulo Freire, a Brazilian educator and philosopher. It presents first the main tenets of Freire’s liberating pedagogy. Then, it explores the Filipinos’ engagement with his ideas. Then, it gives some observations on the said engagement. Finally, it suggests a possible way on how philosophical researches in the Philippines can continually appreciate the relevance of Freire’s liberating pedagogy especially in relating it to a form of Filipino philosophy that is involved in a critique of the society. Keywords: Freire, liberating pedagogy, Philippine education, Filipino philosophy