The present study examines higher education students' perceptions of and engagement with critical pedagogy as a teaching and learning paradigm that aims to promote critical thinking, social justice, and the co-construction of knowledge. Critical pedagogy transforms traditional power ideologies, encouraging students to interrogate prevailing ideologies and engage in dialogues regarding significant socio-political issues. This paper draws on qualitative interviews with twelve university students in order to explore their experiences of this transformative pedagogy, focusing on opportunities and challenges they face. The findings reveal that many students were highly eager to engage with the active and participatory dimensions of critical pedagogy, seeing it as a means through which greater understanding and personal empowerment might be achieved. They appreciate the opportunity to interact with real issues and to interrogate the established norms. However, this research also highlights several key moments of resistance from within the examined framework. Students at times feel uncomfortable with the confrontational positions that come with critical pedagogy in challenging topics which may lead to conflict with their peers or even expose their vulnerabilities. Moreover, this research touches on how the continuous power relations between the teacher and student often hinder students’ willingness to fully participate, as they remain cautious about expressing opposing views.

Despite these challenges, the study concludes that critical pedagogy offers significant potential for transformative learning experiences. Students who receive this kind of pedagogical approach while in school acquire not only critical thinking skills but also a keen sense of agency and responsibility about their own education and social functions. This paper, therefore, invites educators to negotiate class ecology tactfully in order to provide an inclusive and secure environment within which students can engage with critical pedagogy freely without feeling vulnerable.