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This essay begins with an aphorism on education: "forger of the liberating forces towards the progress of the human condition", in its spiritual, intellectual, moral and convivial connotation in harmony with the planetary ecosystem (dignifying progress). It highlights the coincidence of the highest historical levels of professional education with the extreme degradation of Western culture, which reveals the role of education that favors passivity in the face of knowledge and the prevailing order. The characteristics of passive education are contrasted with those of participatory education based on the development of critical thinking. Critical thinking is defined and the type of educational environment that stimulates and channels it is argued, in particular the complex and integrative thinking alluding to the self projected to who we are and where we are, absent in reductionist science. Liberating knowledge is specified and its purpose defined as "to understand ourselves as fraternal humanity and to find our place in harmony with the infinitely diverse concert of the living world". The theoretical revolutions -now dismissed- being seeds of liberating knowledge that revealed anthropocentrism and ethnocentrisms as "prisons of the spirit" are synthesized. It is concluded that liberating knowledge fulfills the utopian role of signaling the endless walking towards dignifying human progress., (Copyright: © 2023 Permanyer.)

This essay defines the current moment as a civilizatory collapse, consequence of the dominance of limitless profit interests, which has been possible due to the insensitivity and permissiveness of most of the population in the face of extreme social and ecosystemic degradations. In the background of such "anesthesia" there is the predominant education and its key role in the reproduction of prevalent social ideas and practices and in the perpetuation of degrading traits: individualism, exclusionary specialization, passivity, competitiveness, consumerism and vulnerability to media manipulation. With this intellective and interpretive framework, the concept of deep and creative critique was updated in order to deepen the critique of medical education, allowing for the differentiation and contrast of two radically different types of education. Firstly, the passive education, reproductive of the degrading traits of universal validity, whose core is the idea of knowledge comparable to a cumulative rote learning of heteronomous and unrelated information, and by an implicit pedagogy focused on facilitating the consumption and uncritical assimilation of established truths. Secondly, the participatory education (proposal to overcome the passive), where knowledge is the elaboration and re-elaboration of students with the essential mediation of critique. The students construct and reconstruct their own versions of themselves and their context; the implicit pedagogy is condensed in infecting enthusiasm to understand who we are and where we are, and procure conducive environments for critique and the elaboration of a progressively penetrating and liberating knowledge that has shown its feasibility in specific situations., (Copyright: © 2018 Permanyer.)

Resumen Esta segunda parte se enfoca en la educación participativa (EPT), una forma radicalmente distinta de entender y practicar la educación en comparación con la educación pasiva . El núcleo de la EPT es desarrollar las potencialidades cognoscitivas inherentes a toda persona, que han sido secularmente mutiladas, relegadas, inhibidas o ignoradas. Se definen las bases epistemológicas y experienciales de la EPT: el concepto de crítica penetrante y creativa , la idea de conocimiento como elaboración propia del sujeto y la experiencia vital como objeto primario de reflexión y cognición. Con estas bases, se especifican los caracteres distintivos de la EPT que apuntan a la formación de sujetos con potencias cognoscitivas y creativas inéditas, capaces de aproximarse a un mundo hospitalario e incluyente. La última parte se dedica a la educación médica que, al adecuarse a la moda de las competencias profesionales , permanece dentro de la pasividad . Se enfatiza el papel clave de las aptitudes cognoscitivas metodológicas y prácticas (la aptitud clínica) en el progreso y superación de la educación y la práctica médicas. Finalmente, se argumenta sobre qué hacer y cómo hacerlo respecto a la educación, en la búsqueda de un mejor mundo a contrapelo de la degradación. Part II is focused on participatory education (PE), a distinctive way to understand and practice education in contrast to passive education. The core of PE is to develop everyone's own cognitive potentialities frequently mutilated, neglected or ignored. Epistemological and experiential basis of PE are defined: the concept of incisive and creative criticism, the idea of knowledge as each person's own construct and life experience as the main focus of reflection and cognition. The PE aims towards individuals with unprecedented cognitive and creative faculties, capable of approaching a more inclusive and hospitable world. The last part criticizes the fact that medical education has remained among the passive education paradigm. The key role of cognitive aptitudes, both methodological and practical (clinical aptitude), in the progress of medical education and practice is emphasized. As a conclusion, the knowhow of education is discussed, aiming towards a better world away from human and planetary degradation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]