Youth and Community Work Practice

Domestication

As ascribed by Freire’s school of thought, domestication is the process of replicating existing and oppressive economic, social and political order whereby the learners are unconditionally acculturated into subordination structures which makes them indebted to the affluent members of the society. Domestication is also a process that nurtures and develops dependent thinkers whose reasoning, creativity and innovation are obscured through a process called banking. Many philosophers support that the rich have found it easier to brainwash people through the use of traditional education systems which advocate for the use of theoretical learning curriculum therefore the whole process of using education to influence the thinking of students is called domestication. Apparently education has been used to marginalize people into becoming domesticated. This aim has been achieved through an act that Freire describes as depositing which then initiates the ‘banking concept of education’.

Based on this concept, it is noticeable that the education system has been transposed to become the depositor where the teachers deposit their beliefs into the students who become the depositories. The deposition process is organized in such a way that it is repetitive and timely so as to enable the students to memorize as much theoretic work as possible. This is done at the expense of exposing the students to practical learning situations which could make them more adapted to being job creators and not job seekers. As a result the concept of banking is attained when the scope of the learner’s actions is limited to receiving deposits from the teachers, filing them as depositories after which they store the corrupted educational deposits in their brains (Freire 2004).

Freire’s model and history

Reflecting back on the life of Paulo Freire is essential in modeling the scope of this paper towards elaborating how community work and youth work practices have shifted their focus into domesticating the youths. Freire was a Brazilian philosopher, a teacher and an advocate for pedagogics. His childhood encounter with poverty and purely theoretic educational curriculum mentored him into seeking reforms sought at transforming domestic education. Additionally, Freire’s experience with metaphysical works of Plato, Karl Marx, Hegel, Engels, Lenin, Simone Weil, Gramsci and other great thinkers nurtured his thinking towards authoring his book ‘Pedagogy of the oppressed’ (Freire 2004). The book illustrates the need for reforms in the education sector in such a way that the novel curriculum embraces modernistic methodologies of learning which will empower the youths into becoming better members of the society. He further uses social models to create a distinction between the oppressor and the oppressed.

According to Freire, social, economic and political injustices in our societies have led to the breeding of the positions of the oppressor and the oppressed. By developing a new and holistic education program, the oppressed will be allowed to regain some sense of humanity but this is possible only if the oppressed take an active role in liberating themselves. The oppressors also need to examine and rethink their role so as to create a cohesive force that will instigate educational reforms. In the event that educational change is prompted, then the students will cease being treated as empty bank accounts where the teachers deposit theories but as creative academicians who have the power to create new ideas, innovations and technologies. Contrary to the domesticating educational culture which works as an inhibitor towards thinking and creativity, Freire proposes the enactment of the Dewey’s description of education. He further cites that youth works have been transformed into education systems that domesticate the youths without raising much attention among the public.

Dewey views education as a determinant in promoting youth works since education impacts on perception of social change and individual consciousness. The two aspects of socialization are prerequisites to social reconstruction which are specifically aimed at eliminating the culture of silence which has been known to suppress the self-esteem of the oppressed making them lose their critical consciousness. These efforts are directed towards emancipating the oppressed members of society and more so the youths from banking which has been known to create disparities in our societies leading to the renaissance of castes and class-ridden societies full of slaves and masters, workers and bosses, students and teachers, oppressors and the oppressed (Freire 2004). Despite his views, Dewey adds that banking education has infiltrated youth works and community work practices and this trend is making the youths domesticated without them realizing.

Essentially the adoption of the banking model makes youths resistant to modernistic educational curriculums that are meant to empower them into breaking the existing cycle of knowledge consented with capitalistic teachings that will forever make the oppressed dependent on the oppressor. Furthermore, Freire emphasizes that the banking model is to be blamed for propagating such myths as capitalists being wealthier than socialists, and that the wealthy have special talents which helps them attract wealth from entrepreneurial activities (Kincheloe 2008). Incidentally these beliefs are not true but because of the imperfections created by the curriculum, the learners are made to believe adjust their thinking to conform to such thoughts which are then perceived by the masses. These limitations can only be eliminated by enacting education for liberation curriculum which is premised on the need to nurture holistic individuals. By so doing, Freire accentuates that human beings will be able to utilize their unrealized potentials increasing their chances of being better youths, citizens and job creators. Again the selfish interests that have been fuelled by capitalistic economic systems which place the interest of the wealthy minority above that of the poor majority will be reversed leading to social balance.

Youth and community work practices as a process of domestication

The youths have become the targets for domestications. To prevent this trend there is need for accreditation of the learning curriculum which will start with dialogue or creating mass awareness. Such forums instill the public with experience which helps them clear of the negated effect created by domestication. Furthermore it is the starting point that instigates educational philosophies in support of socialism and youth works. Critically looking at the Marxist model postulated by Freire, it is worth appreciating that our modern societies need praxis which can only be achieved through structural changes proliferated through creating mass awareness. As such the poor and the middle classes are incited into starting a revolution that will transform their quest for equity to a better level marked with equity in social, economic and political systems (Kincheloe 2008).

In order to do this there is the imminent need to embrace the liberation education as suggested by Freire. To this point, I am in complete acceptance of the school of thought postulated by Paulo Freire because the capitalistic system has led to the emergence of classism and castes which have fueled social divides and the rise of elitism which has been oppressive to the poor. Equally the disparities created by capitalism have hampered structural reforms thus the poor have continued to be exploited by a group of the few wealthy people who control the economic systems. Youth works has to be reformed as the only way towards fighting capitalistic impunity that has dominated modernistic societies In order to gain an elaborate understanding of domestication, possible atrocities posed to posterity and its effect on educational curriculum, there arises the need investigate on the scope of youth works (Freire 2004).

Youth works is a deliberate process initiated and supported by communicates that intend to improve their children and adolescents. Specifically in the United States, youth works are fashioned to engage different youth groups into coordinated programs that range from educational, social to recreational curriculums. Thus universally, youth works are programs designed to impact the young people of the ages between 16 and 25 years with life skills. They offer sets of activities defined over a period of time dating back to several generations thus they are planned to educate the youths on personal growth, enhancement and social development. Youth works basically entail voluntary workmanship which in return complements educational curriculum as well as academic programs.

Indulgence in youth work was tailored to engage the youths into constructive thinking that not only makes them patriotic to their societies but also motivate them into being pioneers of social change. Historically youth groups have been known to help the youths attain the five pillars of holistic growth which is determined by the willingness to volunteer, focus on personal growth, improved interpersonal relationships through group work, nurturing the sense of loyalty and lastly develops ethics, morality and integrity among youths. The elucidation of the activities undertaken by youth groups are interconnected to Freire’s school of thought which advocates for liberated education curriculums that emphasizes on educating the youths rather than domesticating them. This is supported by his caption on education and its ability to liberate the poor from the poverty cycle. Unlike other Marxists who blame the propagation of the class interest as being the sole reason why the rich manage to maintain their status quo. Freire believes that banking educational systems are the sole reasons why the poor will remain poor (Torres & Noguera 2008). Because of this, Freire demonstrates the need for regulation of youth works as a way of delineating the thinking of the youths from being domesticated.

The elites felt threatened into supporting educational reforms that were being initiated by the youth groups as well as community works thus they corrupted the whole curriculum on which youth work was pegged making it vulnerable to domestication. This is because the elites believed that youth works could be used to stage literatures, arts, music, theater, sports and educational forums with the purpose of advancing literacy agendas to the popular masses. The idea of creating liberating educational systems was designed by Freire as the only avenue through which educators will motivate their students into becoming free willed actors in the field of cultural transformation which will be the starting point for transforming students from free accounts or listening objects and making them participants of the learning process where they are free to air constructive ideas and at times critic the theoretic contents of the subjective models that have turned our societies into lifeless servants for the rich (Torres & Noguera 2008). Likewise Freire made a declaration that only the youth works could play a fundamental role in transforming banking educational models which he described as being a narrations of sickness meant to ruin the creativity that is inherent in every human being; by so doing the cycle of oppression that has been maintained by the rich by use of domestication will be broken resulting into economic dispensation and social emancipation.

According to Freire, youth work can accord much value to the curriculum since education is meant to give students the power to create and recreate their own inert personal abilities in a process called metacognition. Deceptively, the idea of metacognition was lost to the subjective schools of thought that abolished the objectivity with which education was created. This is because education was traditionally meant to equip the students with skills that would help them perceive realities that would in turn help them identify social, economic, and political problems that were affecting human beings and solve them in a bid to make life more comfortable. Additionally he described education as a cultural action that prorogates the fight against social emancipation and freedom (Torres & Noguera 2008). Undertaking such activities and propagating them through youth works will be the best method of educating the youth as compared to the banking educational model that has been associated with the domestication of youths. This means that domestication is banking the youths with archaic historical practices that are not applicable in the modern societies while educating the youth is a deliberate process initiated through learning institutions and other social institutions to equip the youths with essential life teachings and practices that makes them innovative creators of ideas which goes a long way into problems facing human kind.

Youth work presents the best avenue where young adults can be triggered into real work life. By so doing the youths will be predisposed to challenges that will enable them benefit from their creativity. Freire suggests the use of educations for liberation systems in strike a balance between giving choices to the young adults and empowering them to undertake leadership opportunities. Perhaps the education for liberation model reflects back on transformational meritocracy and the identification of potential among people rather than embracing purely meritocratic systems that replicate traditional systems of theoretic education. By so doing the youths are exposed to potential consciousness (Rogers & Smith 2011). Furthermore youth works contain teaching on historical events which will be an eye opener for the youths who want to stir themselves and their families out of the poverty cycle. In my opinion, youth work and community work are not purely a reflection of domestication but a deliberate process aimed at liberating the youths and societies from banking educational systems.

History of Youth and Community Work Practices and its connection with domestication

Traditionally youth and community work practices have coexisted properly but with the current realization that the wealthy and influential capitalists transformed their power control strategies and infiltrated the good practices that were being done through youth works, there is need for liberation of these institutions as well. Definitively youth work is a deliberate process initiated and supported by communicates that intend to improve their children and adolescents while community work practice is a social system of social change that is focused on enlightening the whole society through advocating for their participation in organizing of their communities, social planning, management of human services, policy analysis, mediation, social planning and evaluation of the social systems (Jeffs & Smith 2010). Community work practices encourage individuals to collectively work on micro-level problems thus inculcating them with the sense of loyalty towards creating social order. As compared to the traditional community and youth work practices, modern work practices are undergoing rapid transformations which can be explained in terms of traditional values and practices illustrated by Jeff and Smith, (2010); Batsleer, (2008).

According to Jeffs and Smith, (2010) both the concepts underpinning youth and community work have evolved to encompass a wider scope. In addition, the emergence and subsequent development of these two groups have led to target provisions which are explained in five dimensions of focusing on the youths and the community at large, voluntary participation, fostered relationships, association and community involvement, interpersonal skills and education. The need for creation of literacy supersedes all the other dimensions. Education makes it easier for the programs to be accredited and as a result it is even easier to partner with social institutions in order to enhance the chances of reaching out to more people in the society and educating them on the need for the liberation of the education systems in a bid to delineate them from domestication by the wealthy. Even though the historic essence of youth works was to promote voluntary action among youths and willing members of the community who could be equipped with skills of managing emergencies. Role of these groups was then revolutionized in different countries. An example of such youth groups is the Young Men’s Christian Association abbreviated as YMCA which emerged as a Christian based work group (Davies & Batsleer, J 2010).

A story is told of Hannah More who used youth groups to eradicate deprivation and poverty from her Mendip Hill community. The development of youth groups began in the 1890’s when a psychologist by the name of Staley Hall postulated theories in support of adolescents and the emergence of youth groups which marked as the precursor for youth works. In addition to the many transformations that marked the establishment of youth groups, there was the resurgence of youth and community groups in Britain in the 1850’s. This notion was propagated by Reverend Arthur Sweatman who indulged himself in establishing institutions to promote community work and youth integration (Hemmings 2011). He made provisions such as institutions and clubs that provided informal education and later on diverted into providing both formal and informal education. His ministerial works were motivated by the realization that the youths had a lot of youthful energy that if not well utilized could be misused in anti-social behavior. Secondly the reverend supported that his goal of indulging the youths in clubs and institutions were beneficial in reducing literacy. These ideas are connected to the teachings by Paulo Freire.

This means that the first youth works were specialized in evangelical works. Apparently historical developments led to the emergence of unfirmed youth workers who came to be known as the scouts association. This was after an innovation that was launched in the 1880’s in Glasgow (Davies & Batsleer 2010). The idea was invented and experimented by William Smith who was researching on the probable efficiency of youths in uniforms. From the unformed groups, youths were nurtured into becoming musicians, first aiders and campers. Robert Baden-Powell used the ideas of drills regimentation and evangelism to found scouting which was to reshape the destiny of the youth groups that were quickly losing their objective to the drills and over indulgence in religion. This turn of events meant that the youth works were becoming missioned by the churches to propagate their agenda rather than focusing on disseminating education that would reduce illiteracy. The advancement of scouting ideas by Baden-Powell reinforced the idea of creativity because it encouraged the youths to be creative during emergencies. The youths were made to go through drills and training that were assessed as being pertinent to developing holistic individuals. Apart from nurturing innovation, scouting movements molded youths into becoming imaginative which was helpful in undermining the negativities created by the domestication educational systems.

The youths involved in scouts groups were exposed to adventure thus cultivation responsibility among groups and developing friendship groups which were self-sufficient. Since Baden-Powell was suspicious of the new uniformed system of youth groups, his scouting associations were focused on the process whose outcome was talented, creative and imaginative youths who would hold leadership positions (Gilchrist, Jeffs & Spence 2006). Powell further targeted the universal provisions but started with small populations and creation of awareness which was then adopted by his target groups which were schools. The scouting associations were completely devoid of domestication because they emphasized on individual management rather than associations which could obscure the youths from being responsible members of society. His scouting teaching and philosophies emphasized on assumptions such as employment training, inclusion of the youths in national development through voluntary works, change of negated attitudes which in turn shaped self-esteem of impoverished youths to become democratic thinkers with the interest of the community at heart.

After the First World War, the government started indulging itself in community work and youth work which barred democracy by subjugating the efforts made by the youths towards becoming self-driven. The governments trigger for programs that were aimed at funding youth projects made them to become dependent on funding’s from the government which made the independent thinkers dependent on their governments which were still being run by business elites and government officials who were advocating for domestication of the youths so that they continue with the poverty cycle and the banking educational systems that would make them dependent on them for the rest of their lives (Nicholls 2012). The initiation of government funded youth work and community practice works obscured the youths from being objective innovators, and imaginative creators of ideas to finance their projects thus it made them dependent on the capitalists who exploited their ideas at a substantiated price to make more money and become richer. This meant that the youth groups also lost their power and become propagators of the domestication process that breed people dependent on state and civil societies.

References

Davies, B & Batsleer, J 2010, What is youth work? Exeter: Learning Matters. A helpful exploration of the nature of youth work

Freire, P 2004, Pedagogy of Indignation. Boulder: Colorado, U.K.

Gilchrist, R, Jeffs, T & Spence, J 2006, Drawing on the Past: Studies in the History of Community and Youth Work. The National Youth Agency, Leicester

Hemmings, H 2011, Together: How small groups achieve big things. John Murray, London

Jeffs, T & Smith, M 2010, Youth work practice. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. Published in the BASW Social Work series, this book explores different facets of practice like working with individuals, working with groups, conversation and so on.

Kincheloe, J 2008, Critical Pedagogy Primer, (2^nd Ed.). Peter Lang United Kingdom

Nicholls, D 2012, For Youth Workers and Youth Work: Speaking Out for a Better Future. Bristol: Policy Press. Doug Nicholls looks at how youth work can be reconfigured and the struggles that lay ahead.

Rogers, A & Smith, M 2011, Journeying Together: Growing Youth Work and Youth Workers in Local Communities. Lyme Regis: Russell House.

Torres, C & Noguera, P 2008, Social Justice Education for Teachers. Paulo Freire and the Possible Dream, Rotterdam and Taipei: Sense.