In this episode, we look at the history and philosophy of the Zapatistas in order to understand their radical approach to education. The Zapatistas are a revolutionary group in Chiapas, Mexico, made up mostly of poor, indigenous farmers — and they declared independence from the Mexican government in 1994, after the Mexican president signed the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Though the Mexican military continues to intimidate them, the Zapatistas have managed to exercise autonomy (self-governance) by creating their own schools, health clinics, and justice system. Their schools are especially unique in their approach to education. The Zapatistas place a large emphasis on language learning—no student is ever told to give up their native language and learn any “dominate” language. Since all languages are accepted and encouraged, many students in Zapatista schools are polylingual—they know more than one, two, three, or even four indigenous languages. Furthermore, Zapatistas don’t see knowledge as a commodity that can be bought and sold. If someone has knowledge, they are expected to pass it down to the next generation—for that reason, students are never charged for education, nor are “education promoters” make a profit. Education promoters of course have all their needs (food, clothing, lodging) met by the Zapatista community, but they do not receive excess pay—a very different model than what we have in the US, where college tuition can reach $58,000/year. Zapatista lessons, moreover, often happen outdoors, where children receive plenty of visual and kinetic stimulation—which they absolutely need to learn. The Zapatista model of edcuation reminds us that there are alternatives to public education in practice, that we can have an education that centers student dignity—but it also reminds us that we cannot rely on the government to ever provide us with it. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/elmahaba-center/message