The view of education as a liberating, enlightening, individuating process and educational approaches to support this goal are examined. According to Ivan Illich (1970), the social relations within the educational encounter have corresponded closely to the social relations of dominance, subordination, and motivation in the economic sphere. He calls this type of educational encounter the "hidden curriculum." It is suggested that unless explicitly examined and confronted, the formal aspects of classroom teaching function as a hidden curriculum that stands in opposition to the personal development and individuation of both students and teachers, and this situation also severely limits the teaching situation. It is proposed that teachers must come to expect that students are capable of being active, self-aware participants, subjects and objects of study, recipients and providers of knowledge, and creators of new understandings of the human condition. Classroom experiences at the University of Cincinnati, Yale University, and the University of New Haven are cited as illustrations of this point of view. The reasons why participants select a course and their expectations can serve as the historical context and the starting point for confronting the hidden curriculum. In the teaching of developmental psychology, the developmental life history of the student can serve as the stimulus for exploring the concepts of the course and dialogue. The role of small support groups and the issues of curriculum, texts, and grades are addressed. (SW)