This MA thesis explores the purpose of education, and presents suggestions for promoting critical and creative thinking in the (ELT) classroom. It is divided into four parts. The first and the second part speak in favour of the “problem-posing education”, which, unlike “banking education”, where students are rarely encouraged to critically and creatively examine the world outside the school walls, bases itself on creativity and stimulates reflection and action upon reality. The third chapter introduces three approaches teachers could use to promote “problem-posing education” and foster critical and creative thinking in their classrooms: live, socially-engaged theatre; controversial issues classroom discussions; and hearing/sharing stories. The three approaches can be used to tackle a variety of controversial issues about society and fundamental questions about life. The fourth chapter describes how the three approaches could serve to fight the waves of xenophobia upon the arrival of refugees (to Slovenia). First through students’ own experience, when they go to see a socially-engaged play and reflect upon it (The play 6 by Žiga Divjak), then through critically engaging debates in the classroom (“The 6 Thinking Hats”), and last but not least through storytelling approaches (such as “The Living Library”), which allow students to have conversations with people from different cultures, backgrounds and disciplines. The chapter focuses only on issues pertaining to refugees, however using the three approaches, similar analyses can be applied to, for example, issues of race and racism, the rights of women and workers, global warming etc. These are very important, controversial topics that could and should also be discussed in the ELT classroom.
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