Multidimensional Role of Teachers as Pedagogues, Intellectuals and Activists for Promoting Social Justice through Education1

Abstract

This study investigates roles teachers could play in developing their students’ critical thinking and transforming society. The study is based on a literature review. Critical pedagogy is used as a theoretical point of departure. The results show three important roles of teachers, the pedagogical, intellectual and activist roles. Teachers acting as pedagogues can help their students understand the subjects they are focusing on and develop a critical understanding of their own and their society’s situation. Teachers as intellectuals produce knowledge through research on their practice and other fields of knowledge, learn on how to disseminate such knowledge and understanding its consequences. As citizens, teachers use their own and their students’ experiences and knowledge of needs of their community/society to play an activist role in transforming society. Thus, the ideal teacher plays a multidimensional role as a pedagogue, an intellectual and an activist.