Educational reforms and multilateral agencies in Latin America

Abstract

The article explores the educational reforms in Latin America, promoted from the multi-lateral agencies' perspective, such as the Organización para la Cooperación y Desarrollo Económico (OCDE – Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development [OECD in English]), the World Bank, the Organización de las Naciones Unidas para la Educación, la Ciencia y la Culttura (UNESCO - United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization [UNESCO in English]), the joint project Diálogo Interamericano y la Corporación de Investigaciones para el Desarrollo (PREAL – Inter-American Dialogue and the Committee of Research for the Development in English), among others. We started from the need to recognize each entity and its impact over the reforms of the educational systems in Latin America, to state the changes follow the demands of these institutions, and impart a hermeneutic of changes and transformations of the school system. Such changes constitute determining factors for the institutional philosophy which have extended throughout the curriculum, the pedagogy, the didactics, and the academic and administrative functioning of each educational institution. The Latin American countries have implemented diverse educational systems which have been scarcely assertive, as consequence of governmental inter-ests, political principles, and international-entity requirements. They have set up useful educational reforms, for the needs of the educational communities and its contexts. Most part of the reforms of the educational systems in Latin American countries, have occurred during the last fifty years. In the Colombian case, it is confirmed this country holds common elements with the other countries of the region.