The Ironies of Education In the "Banking Concept of Education," Paolo Freire states that the present system of education oppresses man because it stifles his ability to think creatively, thereby resulting in his not being able to affirm his very existence. Therefore, the author argues that the "problem-posing" method of teaching is the only way to reverse the negative effects of the "banking" process, because it liberates men from oppression by enabling them to become "beings for themselves" (Freire 60). However, Freire then contradicts himself and invalidates his contentions about the importance of "problem posing," when he states that if man is left in his natural