| Alternatives
for Democratic Education in the Americas
José Ramos, SUTEP,
Lima, Peru
I.
Introduction
Historically, there have
been two social and economic realities in the Americas. The United
States and Canada constitute a reality marked by development and global
leadership in human development indexes, as a result of their location
in the “First World.” Latin American and Caribbean countries are
located in the pole of poverty, and are referred to euphemistically by
international organizations as “emerging countries.”
The distinction between the
two realities is important when we consider our goal of developing a common
alternative for education in the Americas. To what degree will it be possible
for the peoples and citizens of both realities to agree on a common program
of educational reform? Is working toward a common goal an untenable
illusion or utopia, considering the immense gap that exists between a world
that has achieved undeniable technological and scientific advances and
high living conditions for their populations, and another that remains
trapped in underdevelopment, backwardness in all its systems, instability
in its political processes, and the subordination of its economies to the
decisions of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF)?
Why have we not outlined this common action plan before the present decade,
given that the problems arising from the inequalities between the two realities
already existed?
The last question in particular
merits an answer to understand the project developed by the Trinational
Coalition in Defense of Public Education over the past few years.
We are faced with a neoliberal model of capitalism and globalization that
demands uniform economic, social and cultural policies. Awareness
of the negative impacts of the structural adjustment policies the World
Bank and IMF have imposed on every single Latin American and Caribbean
country is growing.
There is no doubt that, in
the education field, the neoliberal model promotes the application of policies
that diminish advances that have been made toward democracy in education.
At the same time, it promotes its own ideological elements like individualism
and pragmatism that are contrary to the ideals of justice, solidarity,
and equality of rights and opportunities.
The (Canada-USA) Free Trade
Agreement and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), as well
as parts of the Americas Initiative, have increased the application of
neoliberal policies, to the huge detriment of the general population, even
in developed countries such as the US and Canada. And the desire
to expand the FTA-NAFTA throughout the Americas is clear.
As expressed in the 4th Trinational
Coalition in Defense of Public Education (Querétaro, Mexico: November
7-8, 1998), decisions based on the neoliberal model affect people everywhere,
limiting the power of states and placing roadblocks in the path toward
social justice.
Opposition to the education
reforms promoted by the neoliberal model is growing. But it is not
enough just to oppose neoliberalism. New alternatives and viable
strategies must be outlined in order to defend public education and education
as a fundamental right, and to overcome the problems facing public education
in every country in the Americas. The construction or development
of an Alternative for a Democratic Education in the Americas could constitute
a critical response to the situation of deteriorating education systems
caused by the neoliberalism, but it must also involve a new program for
education. It cannot be merely a response to the current crisis,
but must rather be a revitalizing project for the 21st Century.
The Trinational brings together,
in its overall scope, the forces that oppose neoliberal education reforms
and work for the elaboration of new education programs for their countries.
Almost all the education workers’ unions share the same concerns as the
Trinational.
An alternative democratic
education for the Americas should take into account not only the issues
we have in common, but also the differences and pluralities that exist
in each country.
II.
Basic Premises
1. The crisis in education
spans the Americas. The neoliberal approach to the crisis over the
last 20 years has had two fundamental characteristics:
a) A commercial/entrepreneurial
conception of education, under the governance of the free market and with
an individualistic and pragmatic approach to education for children and
youth;
b) The principle of fiscal
savings that obliges the privatization of education and the resulting destruction
of free and universal public education.
Selection of curriculum content
and pedagogical methods, teachers and administrators are based on these
criteria, establishing the dominance of a managerial and profit-oriented
vision of schools.
The undeniable crisis in
education demands responses. Neoliberalism provides its response.
Those of us who defend public education and its democratic character have
our own.
2.
In the Americas there are four levels of development in education:
a) In the United States
and Canada most students enjoy access to an extensive and high quality
education, both in the arts and the sciences. Most young people complete
secondary school, and, in Canada the majority attend some form of tertiary
education.
Within this apparent abundance,
however, there are growing inequalities. In the United States, much
more money is spent on education for the children of the middle and upper
classes than on the children of the poor and racial minorities. Education
in Canada also suffers inequalities, although less than in the US. In particular,
indigenous children have much less success in education than other children.
Globalization and related neoliberal policies and trade agreements, have
led to cuts in publicly funded programs, including education, and encouraged
privatization.
b) Education
in Latin America with the exception of Cuba is truly underdeveloped and
exhibits profound inequality between the social classes, rural and urban
people, and the mestizo population and ethnic minorities. Here the
application of neoliberal policies is deepening the inequalities and causing
the deterioration of certain positive advances that had been achieved.
In these countries the gap between education and real life, between school
and work, are ever more visible and alarming.
c) In the English-Speaking
Caribbean most countries have evolved school systems based on the British
public education model. These countries managed to attain relatively
high levels of school enrollment and achievement, but these accomplishments
have been threatened recently by the introduction of structural adjustment
measures similar to those suffered by Latin American Countries over the
past two decades. These countries are also facing a serious problem of
increasing under-acheivement and school desertion by school age males.
d) Cuban education,
both basic and post-secondary, is exclusively the responsibility of the
state, is a wholly public education system, free and universal, and closely
integrated with overall national social objectives. Despite the economic
difficulties the island faces, school enrollment remains virtually universal
and students consistently demonstrate high levels of achievement in most
subject areas.
3. With the exception
of Cuba, education systems in Latin America have not developed the characteristics
of modern public schools to the same degree that they have in the education
systems of more developed countries. Likewise, these societies are
marked by socio-economic elements inherited from colonialism, characterized
by an absence of the changes wrought by liberal revolutions in other countries;
an almost constant authoritarianism and centralism; deep social inequalities.
Their education systems tend to be anti-democratic and elitist, marked
by an almost complete absence of scientific character; very little coeducation;
and in which indigenous peoples are among the sectors most excluded from
education services.
4. It is necessary to
analyze carefully the positive aspects, as well as the limitations and
deficiencies, of each educational reality. In this way, national
objectives that fit each reality can be generated from our larger, international
objectives. We believe that education reform in every country must
take into account its own reality, and work from this basis, in order to
change that reality. Each country must develop its own values and
priorities, using ideas and experiences from outside their country as an
important means of support, but not as recipes that must be followed.
What has happened among the
countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, and is indeed still happening,
is that the educational reforms are not rooted in the specific reality
of the country. They have been foreign missions, abstract theories
and models that are alien to our particular realities and have served to
fetter our potential and capacity. As with economic and political
systems, in which the dominant classes in Latin American and Caribbean
countries have lacked creativity and independence, so the education systems
have simply imitated and adapted themselves to dominant western models.
We must recognise, however,
that in countries like Uruguay, Argentina and Chile, modern public education
has developed more than in other Latin American countries. This can
be explained in part by the development that capitalism has reached in
these countries, and also because the composition of their population results
in few ethnic conflicts. In the countries mentioned above, however,
neoliberalism is generating serious reverses in the areas of access to
and quality of, education, teaching conditions and financing. What we are
seeing today in Uruguay, Chile and Argentina is that the achievements of
the past are disappearing.
To summarize, our point of
departure is the existence of a crisis in education in the Americas that
requires a different response from the one provided by neoliberalism.
Of course, there should not be a response only to the question of education.
In addition to educational and pedagogical issues, economic and political
realities must be taken into account.
III.
The Principles of Democratic Education
Education should be informed
by certain basic values. Educational aims, objectives and policies
are based on fundamental values which are referred to here as principles.
1. The Principle of Social
Transformation. We need an education system that promotes social
change. This implies creating awareness in children and youth of
the need to build a new society based on equality and solidarity; educating
them to overcome situations of social injustice that currently exist, to
a greater or lesser degree, in each one of our countries.
2. The Principle of Social
Justice. It is necessary to build a new education system that ensures
equality of opportunity for all, independently of social, racial, religious,
or any other type of difference. This principle could also be seen
as the principle of equality, although the related term “equity” has been
appropriated by the World Bank and no longer clearly reflects the aspirations
for justice of our peoples. The principle of social justice is not only
useful in defining and distinguishing a democratic from an authoritarian
education system, but also in measuring the quality of the system. If there
is no equality of opportunity for all, there is no quality education. What
is quality for some, becomes exclusion for others. Quality therefore, is
not just a problem of presentation, but also of justice, and must be seen
within its historical context.
3. The Principle of Holism.
Education must guarantee that children and youth receive an integrated
education that allows for the development of all their potential as human
beings. This principle must include, perhaps with greater justification,
those who are congenitally or accidentally disabled. The holistic
education of a human being presupposes an adequate combination of scientific/technological
education with scientific/humanist education, within a solid framework
of multi-leveled education (note: the term used in Spanish here is educación
politécnica). Neither an obsession with technology, nor a
vacuous humanism, constitute valid alternatives to the holistic formation
of children and youth.
4. The Scientific Principle.
This principle has various implications. First, the education process
must be in a feedback loop with scientific and technological advancements.
Second, the education process must promote critical and rational thinking
in students, to understand and apply the laws of natural and social development.
Third, the elimination from education of all forms of fanaticism and dogmatism
that annihilate creative and imaginative capacity, and which lead to the
kinds of fundamentalism that are dangerously expanding throughout the world
today. One of the most visible failings in Latin American and Caribbean
education is its lack of scientific foundation.
5. The Principle of the
Unity of Theory and Practice. This principle has to do with the application
of the School of Work (experiential education). It implies the combination
of studies with life, research with productive activities - overcoming
empty theorizing, but also avoiding the limitations of purely pragmatic
education. Education based on pure theory is a legacy of the past,
while neoliberalism is trying to globalize their ideology of pragmatism
– resulting in education that focuses solely on training workers for the
marketplace.
School of Work is directed
toward the holistic development of “free producers,” not just
in the sense of the economic production of goods but also in a broader
sense that encompasses culture and the producers’ own self-transformation.
For this reason it is an methodology that directly links an active education
to hands-on production.
6. The Principle of
Continuity. This refers to the current imperative of “life-long learning”
or education as a permanent process for all citizens. Especially
in Latin American and Caribbean countries, the education process should
continue beyond the completion of professional studies, and should also
be directed to those sectors that fall behind in the regular education
process. Life-long learning should be one of the most important concerns
of nations and governments. Ecological education, physical education,
and health education, among other subjects, require an efficient treatment
that favours the formation of a common culture in service of humanity and
society.
7. The Axiom Principle.
This principle is directed to the promotion and development of positive
higher values such as justice, equality, solidarity, freedom, democratic
and patriotic values, honour, and truth in education. These stand
in contrast to the neoliberal axiom that makes of individualism the highest
value of its “modernity,” along with profit, personal success, and competition
- all in the interest of the efficient functioning of the free market.
IV.
Goals and Objectives
On the basis of the above
principles, it is possible to outline some goals and objectives on which
to base educational policies in each of our countries. Of course,
the following is nothing that has not been said before. What would
be new is to harness all possible energy to put these goals into practice.
1. The Goals:
a) Full and holistic formation,
the development of all human aptitudes, the promotion of critical and self-criticism
abilities, and the cultivation of initiative and creativity.
b) The formation of a
democratic and patriotic consciousness firmly linked to the practice of
social commitment to others, not just in a person’s own country, but at
a continental and global level as well. A Pan-Americanism that understands
the importance of integrated, collective development but rejects the hegemony
of any one country, much less that of corporations.
c) The formation
of a consciousness aimed at building a just society.
d) Promotion of the understanding,
knowledge and application of scientific and technological advances in benefit
of peoples and nations, which also rescues and develops our traditional
knowledge.
e) The creation of equality
of educational opportunities for all. Education that lays the foundation
for living and working to the full satisfaction of human and social needs,
through the cultivation of theoretical and practical knowledge, and prioritizing
“the active” in the education process.
f) Promotion of life-long
learning and self-education for individual and collective development.
g) To promote the cultivation
of positive values.
2. The Objectives:
a) To forge a national
consciousness in defense of the supremacy of nations based on the principle
of non-intervention in the internal affairs of nations, and of mutual respect;
b) To forge cultural identity
within the multicultural framework of each country and a recognition of
existing differences;
c) To develop science
and technology that serve the development needs of each country;
d) To promote the holistic,
decentralized, and self-sustained development of each country, within the
framework of its national objectives;
e) To promote the development
of cultural exhibitions of people based on care for and appreciation of
the cultural elements of others and of humanity;
f) To promote, on the
basis of national consciousness, a Pan-American consciousness of integration
without interference, and without the practice of any form of colonialism
or neocolonialism, affirming an international consciousness of mutual respect,
of common development, and of long-lasting peace based on the construction
of a world with social justice.
g) To promote the preservation
and defense of natural resources of each country, making rational use of
them based on a long-term plan for sustainable development.
V.
The Basic Tenets
In the education process
the values that sustain an educational or pedagogical system become permanent
themes, forming the material and cultural conditions of its development.
There are a group of basic elements that contemporary pedagogy is in the
process of developing. Some themes come from the past. Others
themes, like human rights, have been recently adopted and are increasingly
important for evaluating the relevance of an education system. We
will start with human rights.
1. Human Rights. Ultimately,
we educate to promote a life of dignity for all the inhabitants of a country
and for humanity in general. There is an enormous distance between
the national and international precepts that protect human rights and the
degree to which they are fulfilled in social and economic policies, or
in the conduct of those who govern and those who are governed. Numerous
types of discrimination and the continuous violations of human rights continue
apace. To a greater or lesser degree, there is no country immune
to these violations. Education that promotes respect for human rights
means including these rights in the whole education process, independent
of the general curricular content.
2. Solidarity. This
is one of the most important values for the exercise of collective effort
in all social activities, whether in the fields of science, study, labour
or production. Its long-term inclusion in the education process does not
require greater justification. We must make a resolute effort to
counteract the neoliberal campaign to promote extreme-individualism, which
is the negation of solidarity and team work.
A democratic education must
reject discriminatory tendencies toward segmentation. As UNESCO emphasizes
in its report “Education Hides a Buried Treasure,” education itself
is a collective good.
3. Liberty.
In a world in which the struggle to fulfill basic needs rules the lives
of millions of human beings, a world dominated by a globalization strategy
based on economic, social and cultural inequality, and where the manipulation
of information perverts true communication between human beings, the practice
of liberty remains only an aspiration. Even more so when neoliberalism
confuses human freedom with that of the market, and likewise with the freedom
that some people have to manipulate reality according to their individual
interests. Education can promote the awareness of the true meaning
of freedom by cultivating an awareness of this reality and of social problems.
4. Science/Humanism/Technology.
This is an inseparable trinity for a holistic education. The treatment
of these elements as mutually exclusive produces one-dimensional people,
with only a partial vision of the world and of humanity itself. It
will be a great advance to weave all three elements together in the education
process.
5. Ecology and Sustainable
Development. Development as a right for all entails the need to care for
the environment and to promote long-term development that does not destroy
the possibilities of life for future generations. The fundamental
source of these possibilities for future generations is the integrity of
nature. Education can – and must – counteract the unhealthy tendency,
strengthened over many centuries, to degrade the natural environment.
6. Multiculturalism and
Bilingualism. A large portion of regional wars that we have seen
recently in Eastern Europe are rooted in, as one of their components, ethnic
hatred; in differences in customs and race, language and worldviews, religions
and historic traditions, and in a lack of understanding between peoples.
In Latin America and the Caribbean the differences between national majority
and minority populations are clear, but the education system does not address
this reality adequately.
The movement toward multicultural,
bilingual education must be strengthened and developed in all education
systems. In some countries where neoliberal education reforms are
being applied, however, this kind of education is being dangerously reduced
to a mere façade on the altar of budget savings. But behind
this “budgetary” restraint is hidden an ethnocentric bias which favours
the Western worldview.
The indigenous education
currently being promoted by UNESCO marks an important step forward in the
preservation and promotion of the rights of minority cultures - as outlined
in the International Labour Organization’s Convention #169 “On the Rights
of Indigenous and Tribal Peoples.” Article 2, Subsection b) of the 1989
Convention guarantees the “full exercise of the social, economic and cultural
rights of these peoples, respecting their social and cultural identity,
their customs and traditions, and their institutions.” Article 28 of the
same agreement establishes that: “wherever it is viable the children of
the peoples affected should be taught to read and write in their own indigenous
language, or in the language that is most commonly spoken among the group
to which they belong.
7. Tolerance and Respect
for Differences: This is more general than the practice of inter-culturalism.
It signifies respect for human beings with regard to their ideas and their
life choices, as far as these choices do not result in mistreatment or
damage to the human dignity of others. The practice of such tolerance
must also include respect for inter-cultural differences.
8. Cultural Identities:
Education for our peoples must become a tool for building our own vibrant
culture. But we must educate so that national identities do not destroy
the varied cultural identities that may exist within a state, since each
are as legitimate as the other.
9. Progress and Social
Development: It is not the “modernization” that neoliberalism promotes,
which advocates the harnessing of all human activities to the service of
the free market as the motor of development. Progress is material
and spiritual advancement, and social development is the promotion of human
life – these values can provide the horizon to which the education process
can aspire.
10. Patriotism and National
Autonomy: These are prevailing civic subjects, as much in developed countries
as in those which still find themselves in the path toward the construction
of their nation. Of course, chauvinism and xenophobia must be prevented
in the process of a patriotic education. On the other hand, patriotism
means more than defending one’s territory. It is also the promotion
of national sovereignty as a way to defend of the right of every country
to decide its own destiny; to promote its own development, autonomy and
self-sufficiency, and to defend its natural and human resources.
The vast majority of countries in the Americas lack these rights.
11. Democratic Participation:
In contrast to the centralism which dominates the education systems of
many of our peoples and which has been exacerbated by neoliberalism’s “decentralism,”
we must promote the democratic participation of teachers, students and
parents in the educational process. This must take place within the framework
of general policies of participation guided by an organized population
and on a national education policy.
Centralism may only be overcome
through the practice of democratic participation, that is, the power of
affected groups to make decisions in every local and regional space. The
move towards regional and local decision-making however must not lead to
the disintegration of national structure.
Democratic participation
must not be confused with the “decentralization” and “participation” promoted
in neoliberal education policies in Mexico, Peru, Argentina and other countries.
These policies are no more than thinly veiled efforts to transfer financial
responsibility for education from the state to the local community.
VI.
School Administration
The shaping of education
values depend to a great degree on the form and content of school administration,
on the structure and exercise of administrative authority, and on the internal
and external relations that this produces. Underlying what is taught
are the philosophy and methods of the school administration, which are
directly related to the administration of education by the ruling State.
The traditional model of
school administration is authoritarian and empirical, routine-oriented
and conservative. It is an outdated philosophy but its practices
are still evident in almost all countries of the Americas. In the
face of the crisis in education, neoliberalism imposes its own administrative
approach, the entrepreneurial/managerial model, in accordance with their
commercial vision of education. From this viewpoint, school administration
has little to do with pedagogy, so the director/manager does not need to
be a pedagogue. Even the classroom teacher becomes a technical facilitator
of learning, useful only for applying the methodologies for “active teaching.”
The administrative structure proposed by neoliberals seeks to make the
school into a self-financing entity. In turn the main motivation
and focus of those who manage the school must be to generate financial
resources. The classroom teacher becomes a worker who must adapt
to the needs of the free market.
In face of the crisis in
the traditional model of administration and the neoliberal response, we
must look to the rich tradition of modern pedagogy, to the experiences
of advanced education systems, as well as to the experiences of popular
education from Latin America, in order to identify elements for a new model
of school administration.
1. The School of Work.
This means the projection of school into the day to day life of society,
with a goal of forming free producers and citizens. Its structure is not
one of isolation, but rather of a learning centre actively engaged with
its social environment. But it is not one of adaptation to the environment,
but rather of transformation of that environment.
2. Permanent Interaction
between Theory and Practice. The organization and administration of schools
must focus on the gathering of practical experiences, systematizing them
through theory, and then applying them in the classroom. This requires
the development of mechanisms to do so; adequate space, laboratory modules,
fields of experimentation; in sum, a new relationship between the school
and its environment.
3. Collective and Democratic
Control. School directors, teachers, students, and local organizations
should constitute an entity for fundamental decision-making and democratic
participation that would influence the functioning of the whole educational
structure, building an image in the community of a truly dynamic and fraternal
entity capable of developing education policy that meets social needs.
4. Collective Processes
for Teaching/Learning. Schedules and teaching materials must be laid out
such that teachers and students can interact as much as possible in the
teaching/learning process, a far cry from the vertical structure of traditional
schooling.
5. Interdisciplinary Relationships.
While recognizing the importance of teaching specialties, schools must
promote the unity of knowledge; including the integration of learning materials,
and recognition of the mutual influence of science, humanities, and technological
specialties.
6. Coeducation for all.
The education of both genders together should be an implicit requirement
as a tool for the equality of rights between men and women and as a mechanism
for fulfilling the democratic rights of women. Coeducation is still
not fully developed in many Latin American and Caribbean countries and
its notable absence reflects the strong presence of conservative elements
in the education system in these countries.
7. Personal and Collective
Self-development. In reality, we educate – or we should educate – so that
people acquire the capacity to continue educating themselves, to continue
developing themselves on a personal level, and to help one another in the
process of self-development. In this regard, the structure and administration
of schools should facilitate self-development activities.
VII.
School Systems
School systems are being
reconfigured in many countries around the world, including the Americas.
The World Bank has been directing reforms in the structure of education
systems, prioritizing primary education in underdeveloped countries and
seeking to universalize access to this level of education. Their program
of reform, however, requires the de-profesionalization of teachers and
an increased financial burden on parents.
Changes to education systems,
that is, to the organizational structure of education systems, will not
have far reaching effects unless they obey important principles, objectives,
and goals.
In the current world, early
education is valued without exception as the formative base that guarantees
better and more thorough learning and scholarly achievement down the road.
Where differences of opinion exist, and sometimes very serious ones, is
about the number of years of schooling to include in basic education.
There are those who consider that elementary school is all that should
be encompassed in basic (free and compulsory education), those who extend
it to the secondary level, and others who propose the replacement
of the primary/secondary distinction with a single a basic education
of longer duration. There are similar debates about whether or not
post-secondary education should also be included in basic (universal) education.
Existing school systems,
however, all share the same basic structure. They all attempt to adapt
the system to either what are perceived as national needs, or to their
educational concepts. In this case it is risky to attempt to design rigid
recipes to be followed in all countries. Nevertheless, we should keep in
mind that, side by side with regular education, we must also consider adult
education, the modalities of special education, distance education and
other forms of education that take place outside the physical confines
of the school through the use of new communication technology.
For our part, we propose
the introduction of sub-systems of national programs of “education for
all” that employ the most varied instruments of communication. These programs
would focus on areas such as ecological education, the diffusion of culture,
the defense of human rights, civil defense, health care and preventative
health, collective sport and recreation, etc..
The renovation of our education
systems must be all-encompassing insofar as they are:
a) holistic, encompassing
all elements of education and culture;
b) integrated, implying
a coherence between all levels of the education system;
c) flexible, so as to
permit the realization of necessary changes in the process of their application;
and
d) functional, in that
the larger development goals of each country and the needs of its inhabitants
are served.
VIII.
The Conditions
1. The natural and cultural
landscape of the Americas manifests great diversity. The richness
that surrounds us allows to develop a creative imagination in educating
children and making the school an attractive space for learning, as numerous
experiences in popular education have demonstrated.
2. To develop democratic
education in the Americas it is necessary to produce, however, fundamental
changes in the exercise of political power, in the administration and leadership
of the state, and in the management of the economy and the media.
Without democratic states and society, democratic education systems can
neither exist nor develop. Currently, the most difficult obstacle
facing us is the neoliberal strategy, which is restricting social rights
in the areas of education, health, and social security.
3. Only with profound
changes in the substance of education can the current crisis be overcome.
We need a holistic education reform in each country that affects not only
curricula, but also methodologies and administration.
4. A vital condition for
achieving democratic education reform is the recognition of the legitimacy
of public schools as fulfilling the fundamental right to education, and
as an obligation of the state, as well as the legitimacy of public school
modernization and renovation, with all its historic, political, economic,
cultural and pedagogical content. Without public education it is
impossible to develop equality of opportunities for all, nor will it be
possible to confront neoliberalism’s wave of privatization.
5. The defense of the
teaching profession as a public career is another necessary condition for
a new education system, since neoliberalism is determined to destroy this
profession based on a scathing criticism of the impoverished teachers of
Latin America and the Caribbean, undermining and depreciating their value
to justify the reduction of their salaries in real terms.
6. We are aware that only
a broad movement in defense of public education and in search of an alternative,
democratic education can change the direction of education in our countries.
It is necessary to generate this awareness among the people in our countries.
Teachers, youth, and democratic intellectuals are all part of the social
and political forces that must commit themselves to this struggle, a struggle
that due to its ambitious objectives will be long, complicated, and subject
to strong pressure by global monopolies and their international entities.
IX.
The New Teacher Profile
Teachers in the Americas
are immersed in different economic and social conditions, depending on
whether they belong to the developed world of the US and Canada, or to
the underdeveloped countries of Latin America.
First, the components and
process of teachers’ education must be addressed. The notion that
teachers are increasingly useless in face of the development of cybernetics
and modern processes for transmitting ideas, texts, etc. should not
be taken seriously. Teachers’ education will continue to be necessary
in the future. What will change is its profile and its components,
but not its fundamental role in the teaching and learning process.
We visualize teachers’ education
as having three main levels or components:
1. General Knowledge.
Which includes basic knowledge and understanding of natural, human, cultural,
scientific, and technological phenomenon; including cybernetics and its
developments in the area of information management. The teacher must
know the fundamental facts of geography and world and national history;
natural sciences; the basic elements of math; art and literature; technological
processes; psychology; and philosophy. In other words, we need teachers
with the most broadest possible training to confront the huge challenges
of what has come to be called the “information society.”
2. Pedagogy. A certain
level of pedagogical training must be common to all teachers, independently
of their specialty. This implies thorough knowledge of pedagogy in
general, related teaching methods, general methods of scientific research,
child psychology etc. In this way, the future teacher will understand
then fundamentals of his or her profession.
3. Specialized Training.
This training includes sufficient practical experience in the corresponding
specialty; as such, it is this level of education that creates different
professions.
Teacher training must happen
at a university level that can offer the breadth of skills and knowledge
needed by teachers, and not, as neoliberalism posits, be a mere technical
training in the transmission or facilitation of learning.
The university training of
the New Teacher, although necessary, must nevertheless be flexible enough
that it is possible to train teachers from indigenous and other minority
cultures in a way that reflects their own reality and enables them to work
within their own communities. The purpose of this is not to produce divisions
between ethnic groups such as mestizos, indigenous peoples and “whites,”
but rather to facillitate the educational process and to reflect and respect
the cultural values of each people.
As for the characteristics
and personal profile of the New Teacher, we outline here some of the most
important ones:
1. Solid professional
training based on a scientific understanding of reality and thorough knowledge
of their subject area;
2. Long-term commitment
to the problems of his country and fellow citizens;
3. Commitment to the transformation
of unjust systems and the creation of a socially just order;
4. Respect for children
and youth, and commitment to inculcate in them a social conscience, human
dignity, and the desire to struggle for a better world;
5. A guide and organizer
of his or her people in their struggle to improve their quality of life
and achievement of their rights;
6. Democratic behavior
within and outside of the school; and
7. Honourability and a
love of truth that avoids the irrational fanaticism that leads to errors
in the teaching practice.
The new teacher will always
strive to ensure that children develop their individual strengths from
the beginning, to achieve what some pedagogues call “cognitive independence.”
S/he will also ensure that they develop their personality through a harmonious
and multifaceted education, that develops their ability to confront and
resolve new problems, both during their school years and in the future.
Only a teacher convinced of his or her mission, and with adequate and sufficient
training, can make these objectives a reality.
In each one of our countries
there exist paradigms and model teachers that we must look to, value, and
present as an example to new generations.
X.
In Search of a Common Future
As the peoples of the
Americas, we are destined to reach a consensus of ideals based on common
values of justice, democracy, equality, and mutual respect.
Each country possesses deeply-held
values stemming from its history. We must focus on these values to
combat the forces that are trying to prevent us from uniting. We
must also look to our national and grassroots traditions, the legacy of
humanity, and the creative application of scientific and technological
advances.
March, 1999
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