The Freinet method applied to digital mediation
The pedagogical method known as “Freinet” (conceptualized by the pedagogue Célestin Freinet from the 1920s to the 1960s, as a synthesis of pre-existing new pedagogies) is centered on doing, with tools, a purpose and autonomy for the students.
The making of a newspaper, with all its stages (structure, subjects, illustrations, surveys and interviews, writing, layout, printing, distribution) was one of the important pedagogical tools used by Freinet. In 1932, Freinet triggered what is known as the “Freinet affair”: a pupil recounted in the newspaper, which was distributed in the village, his dream of revolting against the mayor. A national campaign to denigrate Freinet was orchestrated from this “scandalous” newspaper. Paradoxically, this scandal also contributed to Freinet’s notoriety.
What seems to me that can be retained from the Feinet method in terms of methodology for digital mediation is:
- The technical tools, organized in a productive and functional way in autonomy, are the backbone of the educational device.
- Learning takes place within the framework of a project with a concrete end: a film shown to spectators, a website visited by Internet users, a printed newspaper, a photo exhibition, etc.
- The responsibility of the learners is full and complete both in technical terms and in terms of content.
- The teacher becomes a supporter.
These concepts almost seem to be common sense, but with digital tools it requires a real methodological work to be able to use them fully. Here are a few questions to ask yourself, to address the pitfalls that can be faced:
- Are the technical tools (computer, cameras, tape recorders, web server...) fully accessible to learners? Can they operate them in a truly autonomous way? Can we “leave them the keys” without feeling fear in ourselves?
- If not, then it is better to simplify the tools than to keep tools that may be more efficient but that do not allow full autonomy. The goal is pedagogy, and it can only be effective if there is real autonomy.
- Does the project have an end goal to which the learners will be actors? That is to say, for a film for example, that they also make the projection of the film (which is the moment of finality, of meeting with the public), for a photo exhibition that they make the hanging, the communication, the mediation and the unhooking, etc.
- Will the learners be subject to censorship for their content? If this is to be the case, then the initial framework of the project must be modified so that the learners can be totally free, and responsible, for their content.
We can see that it is not easy, with the digital tools and the regulatory frameworks of projects in our contexts, to respect these criteria. Yet it is essential. Thus, the purpose, the forms and the technical chain mobilized for the project must be adapted to the pedagogy, and not necessarily mimetic of the professional practices of the production (cinematographic, literary, musical...).
Here you will find educational tools, practical and conceptual. These tools are based on the experiences and thinking that I have been developing in a large number of contexts since the 1990s. I have developed a singular, operative pedagogical practice, inspired by Célestin Freinet’s methods among others, adapted to contemporary human issues and to the tools of the 21st Century.
Pedagogy is an experimental practice, which has its theories, its history and its thinkers. It is a central construction tool in the educational field but also beyond, in the framework of professional interactions or cultural mediation for example. Thus the usefulness of the methods and reflections you will find here goes beyond the context of teaching.
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Pedagogical Innovation
From method to posture, reinventing the act of teaching.
Pedagogical innovation is not limited to a catalog of new techniques. It resides, in my view, in the ability to invent, here and now, a learning (…) -
For an ecology of dispensability
Rethinking authority and transmission.
Faced with the vertical management that dominates and alienates, another path exists: that of an authority that aims for its own dispensability, (…) -
The specter of the other
From anxious dehumanization to confident recognition.
How can the other, a subject of rights, become a threatening figure? A reflection born from a confrontation with reality, beyond the fantasies and (…) -
The State of Openness
For democratic and transformative facilitation.
How can we cultivate a welcoming posture that allows everyone to contribute fully? Openness is not a method but an inner state that transforms our (…) -
Respecting Instructions
When creative transgression becomes a source of learning.
The voluntary or involuntary transgression of instructions, often creative, if not considered as an error, becomes a source of enrichment and (…) -
Education in the age of artificial intelligence
Rethinking our practices for a changing world.
AI disrupts our relationship to knowledge, thus questioning the foundations of education. This transformation goes beyond the technical to touch (…) -
Formalizing the informal
Informality, essential to learning, resists structure while calling for it. How to tame it.
The absence of informal aspects in distance learning forces us to rethink its fundamental nature. This constraint becomes a laboratory for (…) -
Secret violence
The roots of authoritarianism: what elementary school really teaches.
In France, the transition to middle school exposes young people to a secret violence, reproducing school authoritarianism in their autonomous (…) -
Is pedagogy revolutionary?
For an education policy.
Education is torn between two visions: preparing for a competitive world or fostering democracy in schools. In my view, true effectiveness lies in (…) -
Truth and lies
Ethics of the pedagogical relationship.
Authentic pedagogy is grounded in truth within the teacher-student relationship. Beyond content, it is the value of words and honesty that enable (…) -
Mind mapping to create groups
Autonomy and empowerment for small groups.
Mind mapping facilitates team formation by making choices visible, empowering participants, and creating a more autonomous group dynamic compared (…) -
Emotional synchronization
A technique for empathizing with the audience.
How can we improve public speaking in front of a group? This can be a very challenging exercise, especially when facing people who aren’t (…) -
Play and joy
Learning is based on free and joyful experience.
Effective learning is based on free and joyful experience. Play, in the Winnicottian sense, represents creative autonomy rather than mere (…) -
Violence and the law
Revealing an ordinary cognitive dissonance.
I question the use of violence to enforce the law and propose an alternative vision where the law would serve to emancipate rather than subjugate, (…) -
Listening to the Other
The frame’s foundation.
For effective pedagogy, listening to students by the teacher is essential. Contrary to expectations, it is first and foremost the teacher who must (…) -
Action or information?
A dialectic of pedagogy.
Educational approaches can take two paths: information (transmission of knowledge) and action (lived experiences). These two complementary (…) -
Philosophy and pedagogy
For a profound practice of pedagogy.
Philosophy and pedagogy are deeply interconnected, as our worldview influences our educational approach. If we consider that humans are (…) -
The path of the person
Attention to others as a pedagogical principle.
In an educational context, the non-participation of learners does not always indicate disinterest. By focusing on their individual progress rather (…) -
Fear, a learning inhibitor
Elements of neuroscience.
Learning is about creating new neural connections, which requires resisting reflexive thinking, activated in situations of danger or stress. To (…) -
The symbolic third, a tool to connect
Psychoanalytical tool to promote the construction of the link.
The symbolic third is a concept that may seem very abstract, but for me it is very effective in creating a constructive link, especially between (…) -
Podcast: “For a democratic and feminist pedagogy”
Dialogue between Noémie Rubat du Mérac and Benoît Labourdette on June 25, 2022.
Overview of the fundamentals of the pedagogical actions conceived and carried out by Benoît Labourdette, linked to the deconstruction of systems (…) -
It is the educator and not the child who needs pedagogy
Podcast on the subject of pedagogical posture.
Contrary to popular belief, the most effective way to help people learn is not to pass on knowledge and skills, but to put yourself in a position (…) -
The Freinet method applied to digital mediation
Pedagogy and politics of autonomy.
The pedagogical method known as “Freinet” (conceptualized by the pedagogue Célestin Freinet from the 1920s to the 1960s, as a synthesis of (…) -
Work or mastery ?
Methodology of the productive action.
How do we achieve the best possible result in the work, in the construction? In my opinion, contrary to popular belief, it is not the search for (…) -
The Rational Education of Childhood
A film by Benoît Labourdette (on a text by Émilie Lamotte, 3’43s, 2019).
The most effective educational principles are not the ones we believe. Discovery of Emilie Lamotte’s sharp and constructive thinking. Émilie (…) -
Fragile hopscotch in the sky
A film by Benoît Labourdette (3’31s, 2019).
The inner experience of a moment of pedagogical innovation in the classroom. -
What is a “good frame” for pedagogy?
In the field of education, there is a consensus that a “frame” is essential for the effective functioning of the educational strategy, and (…) -
Out of the comfort zone
In collective work, paradoxically, it is when one does not feel reassured that one works best. But how does it work?When we prepare for a job (…) -
Listening and silence
How to get listening and silence in a group? Surprisingly, by going through a work on oneself the results can be spectacular. Silence is a (…) -
Mindmapping
What mindmapping is and how to use it as a professional tool. Quick synthesis. Mindmap, heuristic map or mental map?A mindmap (in english), (…)
See also
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Pedagogy of Artificial Intelligence Creating rather than explaining.
The educational tool “Dans le regard de l’IA” (“Through the Eyes of AI”) by Média Animation sets out to question the biases of generative (…) -
Liability and computer backup To stop turning our backs on our future.
Computer backup is often neglected due to a lack of understanding and the illusion of the ubiquity of digital data. This unawareness exposes us to (…) -
“Territorial approach, participation, youth and digital technology”: interview of Benoît Labourdette by Serge Saada (52’, 2021) Observatory of cultural mediation in the social field.
As part of the Observatory of cultural mediation in the social field, Serge Saada interviewed Benoît Labourdette on the impact of the (…) -
Haute Savoie Department: “Digital technology and artistic and cultural practices through a pedagogical approach” Cultural policy
How to raise awareness in a very short time and in an active way about the creative potential of digital technology? FrameworkTh eDSDEN of (…) -
Ecology and Artificial Intelligence Introduction to concrete awareness of the environmental impact of data centers.
The rise of AI is generating unprecedented ecological pressure on water and electricity resources. Facing this challenge, decentralization and (…)
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