These are the key themes of our meeting
During the Congress, we want to emphasize that education based on Freinet’s values is a real tool for social transformation. Solidarity, freedom, and democracy in education become the force through which schools can respond to global crises, build just and peaceful societies, and prepare learners to actively shape the world they live in.
At the international meeting of teachers and educators, RIDEF 2026, we want to clearly express the importance of these values – together and in solidarity for freedom and democracy!
These are key foundations both for education and for the development of school communities around the world. They find their justification in the pedagogy of Célestin Freinet, in literature, and in research. Freinet believed that the school should be a place full of trust and cooperation, where members of the school community can grow as free, critically thinking individuals and as active citizens.
Contemporary education, especially in the international context, focuses on inclusion and support for people from different backgrounds. Solidarity was the foundation of the educational process according to Freinet – his methods, such as teamwork and the collective organization of classroom activities, enabled direct interaction, the exchange of experiences, and the building of trust. Cooperation, sharing knowledge, and mutual assistance fostered the creation of a learning community in the spirit of solidarity.
Current challenges, such as the war in Ukraine or conflicts in Asia and Africa, highlight the importance of solidarity in education in defending freedom and the right to live in peace. Ensuring the safe daily life of children, young people, and adults should be a priority, and teachers cannot remain indifferent to the violation of children’s rights to education and development (Convention on the Rights of the Child). An example is the presence of more than 150,000 refugee students from Ukraine in Polish schools – their integration and support are today an essential part of the daily work of teachers and entire school communities.
Freinet rejected the authoritarian style of teaching, advocating that learners should have the right to make decisions regarding their own learning process. Freedom in his pedagogy meant independent experimentation, discovery, and acquiring knowledge, as well as taking responsibility for one’s own decisions. This approach developed critical thinking skills, creativity, and the ability to solve problems innovatively, which contemporary research also confirms (Arum, Roksa, 2011).
Democracy is a key element of Freinet’s pedagogy. The school should prepare learners for active and conscious participation in society. Decision-making, conflict resolution, and cooperation within the school community develop the competences needed to engage in civic life as adults. Schools that uphold democratic principles create an environment that fosters the development of both learners and teachers, and, in a broader context, peaceful and just communities.
Education becomes a force for social change when schools create a space of solidarity, freedom, and democracy. Involving all members of the school community in decision-making, solving problems together, and carrying out social projects transforms the school into a laboratory of social life. In this way, learners acquire competences of cooperation, empathy, and responsibility towards the world, and schools become places that respond to global challenges and prepare communities for peaceful coexistence.
