Chapter 36 - Thinking Brecht in(to) the University

Summary

This article examines the relevance of Brecht’s ideas about theater and pedagogy for the contemporary university, suggesting that a Brechtian approach has the potential to liberate the way that we think about university education and the role of teachers, students, and administrators.Rather than accepting the world as static and given, a Brechtian approach to pedagogy can encourage and develop an active, student-centered approach.It can help to encourage students to create and take charge of their own meaning-making activities.Just as Brechtian theater insists on revolutionary change and invites audience participation, so, too, a Brechtian approach to pedagogy invites student participation and activity, turning over much of the responsibility for meaning-making to those who are seeking an education.This would constitute a revolutionary new way of looking at university education.