Early Pedagogical Influences on the Mississippi Freedom Schools: Myles Horton and Critical Education in the Deep South (Chapter 8) (Biography‪)‬

During the summer of 1964, Mississippi communities and activists established forty-one "Freedom Schools" that served over two thousand students. The Mississippi Freedom Schools embodied a critical philosophy of education. Students became aware of the oppressive structures that impacted their lives and were able to critically examine and challenge the rationale of structured oppression. Moreover, Freedom School teachers utilized unconventional teaching strategies. Students were the center of instruction, black history and culture was included in the curriculum, the community was involved in the schools, and students and teachers learned from each other in a dialogical method of learning. In this process, students were educated to critically examine their environment and to take direct action to affect social change.