ROUSSEAU AND THE PARADOXES OF LATIN AMERICAN EDUCATION

Abstract

The purpose of this essay is to establish a dialogue with Rousseau having as backdrop the contradictions and paradoxes of Latin American education. The axis of the reflection is constituted by the link between education and politics in Rousseau. This is an organic relationship in which the educational project is situated within a project of society that, on its turn, can only be developed through education. In this instituting character lies the radicalness of Rousseau´s pedagogy which keeps inspiring practices that try to break with institutionalized practices, thus creating the possibility for the emergence of new forms of living together and social organization. The paper is divided in three parts: the relationship between education and politics in Rousseau; the presence of Rousseau in the emancipatory movements in Latin America; and the spaces for the development of pedagogical alternatives.