From Freire to religious pluralism: exploring dialogue in the classroom

The educational work of Paolo Freire on dialogue took place in a specific context: poverty and oppression in Brazil and Latin America in the 1960s. Similarly, Buber and Levinas were engaged in, or reflected on, contemporary philosophical debates. During the last half century, the irruption of the 'Third World' into geopolitics has been, most notably, the irruption of the non-Christian world into prominence. The context of religious pluralism makes new demands on the practice of dialogue as an educational tool but still benefits from the insights and wisdom of their thinking.