Observing Education: From the Situated Research Threads and Challenges

Abstract

The article aims to expose aspects of the research carried out in the Observatory of National and Regional Education -OBSED- of the INIE. A brief analysis is made of the public policies in education adopted in recent years by the countries of Central America, especially marked by the policies of the World Bank and UNESCO. The analysis leads in particular to reflect on the Costa Rican educational policy, placing it in the context of job profiles demanded by the job market linked to economic globalization, as well as in relation with structural social inequalities, inequity, and the increase of poverty registered in the countries of the region. It also addresses two central aspects that determine education public policies: the approaches and strategies of educational systems and the dimension of interculturality as an unavoidable epistemic/pedagogical need, which must be properly incorporated in the educational processes in order to advance in addressing, and resolving situations of inequity, inequality and structural educational exclusion. The final purpose is to put into perspective the need for an education that recognizes and relieves the needs and expectations of people and communities located in their respective socio-cultural realities, in relation to the analysis and reflection on socio-educational processes in the Country and in Latin America and the Caribbean.