Educational programs to rural population. Experiences in Argentina and Mexico

Abstract

The article examines a couple of programs: the Educational Centers for Total Production in Argentina and the Consolidation Program for Schools and School Transportation called «Aprender en Grande» in México. The objective is to describe their implementation, identify challenges they have faced and contrast two options thought and designed for the educational care of rural populations. It is a qualitative study, the data was obtained through documentary review, the application of interviews with teachers, authorities and academics, as well as visits and observations in rural schools. Among the findings in the contrast of both models, the following are identified: the differences they have in the meanings of community participation, in the relevance of school content and in promoting the roots of students in their localities of origin. While the Argentine case starts from the recognition of an active participation of families in the pedagogical and school management processes; In the Mexican case, the collaboration of the members of the localities has an operational perspective in the operation of the program and the school contents do not have specific approaches to rural issues. This last case seems to be a program that meets the goal of expanding educational coverage at the secondary and upper secondary levels, but not from an inclusion perspective, since it does not promote the recognition or educational attention to social diversity.