Popular Education

Abstract

The article presents briefly what popular education consists of as it is understood today in France (a concept that in Catalonia we identify, to a large extent with the approaches of social education based on socio-educational support, community development and the Paulo Freire proposals in relation to adult education). The article describes its characteristics, principles and orientation, always in favor of progress and social transformation. Emphasis is placed on emancipatory orientation and action through bonding, collective action and militant commitment to justice and social emancipation. The purpose of social transformation of the popular education project is subject to two objectives: awareness and the development of the power to act. Following is a historical tour of popular education in France, which highlights the role played by the Maisons des Jeunes et de la Culture, of the early twentieth century, refers to the decline that lived in the decade of the 90s (with the weakening of the welfare state and the rise of individualism) and survival today, in which it continues to be a benchmark for social work professionals, and is still represented by relevant institutions such as the AFEV, the Léo Lagrange centers, Les Petits Débrouillards or the CEMÉA.