Educators need to know what happens in the world of the children with whom they work. They need to know the universe of their dreams, the language with which they skillfully defend themselves from the aggressiveness of their world, what they know independently of the school, and how they know it.

The oppressors do not perceive their monopoly on having more as a privilege which dehumanizes others and themselves. They cannot see that, in the egoistic pursuit of having as a possessing class, they suffocate in their own possessions and no longer are; they merely have.

The unfinished character of human beings and the transformational character of reality necessitate that education be an ongoing activity.

Dialogue cannot exist, however, in the absence of a profound love for the world and its people.

Within the word we find two dimensions-reflection and action. If one is sacrificed even in part, the other immediately suffers. To speak a true word is to transform the world.

Experience teaches us not to assume that the obvious is clearly understood

The former oppressors do not feel liberated. On the contrary, they genuinely consider themselves to be oppressed.