Transformative encounters : the transformative learning experience of a leader

Abstract

The encounter with the new, that which is different from one’s prior perceptions, understandings, and lived experiences, holds the potential to educate. However, such potential is not realised automatically. Encounters with the unfamiliar may evoke a range of responses, both affirming and alienating: celebration, rejection, violence, indifference, or transformation. Thus, while the encounter with the other is inherently part of any educational experience, it should not be considered educational ipso facto (Freire, 1998). This paper explores when and how such encounters can indeed become transformative educational experiences. Paulo Freire, in his reflections on education, emphasises that learning requires an alternating process between subject and object, between teaching and learning. While acknowledging the distinct roles of teacher and student, he underscores the importance of a dialogical exchange. This process is not about transferring knowledge from a knowing subject to a passive object but about mutual formation. As Freire (1998) states, “Whoever teaches learns in the act of teaching, and whoever learns teaches in the act of learning” (p. 31). In this view, education that fails to foster reciprocal engagement risks becoming a vehicle for perpetuating the status quo rather than inspiring transformation. [extract]