Notes for rethinking Indigenous education in the light of its history and of the processes of liberation of the Indian in Bolivia

Abstract

This article studies the history of indigenous education in Bolivia from two fundamental aspects: the education which can be considered as built «from below», that is, from the very same indigenous peoples or nations, and the one which resulted, in different historical times, from governmental policies. The latter addressed, in one way or another, the «education of the Indian», in the framework of the «educational reforms». The hypothesis that is being defended is that today both tendencies can meet and converge. This is due to the fact that indigenous nations of Aymara, Quechua and Guarani, as well as peoples of the lowlands of Bolivia, have reached an important direct representation in the institutions of the State.