Freire's pedagogy emerged from his observations and experiences working as an instructor in literacy programs with peasant laborers in Brazil.
[citation needed] The constructivist theory holds that knowledge is constructed by individuals by using their experiences, which is what Freire drew upon in developing his pedagogy.
[4] Problem-posing education solves the student–teacher contradiction by recognizing that knowledge is not deposited from one (the teacher) to another (the student) but is instead formulated through dialogue between the two.
Ira Shor, a professor of Composition and Rhetoric at CUNY, who has worked closely with Freire, also advocates a problem posing model in his use of critical pedagogy.
He has published on the use of contract grading, the physical set-up of the classroom, and the political aspects of student and teacher roles.