Teacher Training in Latin America: Innovations and Trends
By Juan Carlos Navarro, Aimee Verdisco (08/00, EDU-114, En, Es) See also Education, Training and Science & Technology
On average, teachers' qualifications in Latin America fall short of what is needed to implement and sustain the education reforms under way in most countries. Large investments in teacher training, both pre-service and in-service have been made and will continue to be made by the governments of the region in recognition of this fact, often with the support of the IDB and other international organizations. This paper responds to the growing demand for new approaches to the design of teacher training components in education reforms. This demand reflects widespread disappointment with the effectiveness of traditional methods and the principles upon which they are organized. The paper builds on the existing literature on the subject around the world but draws its conclusions from eight case studies on innovations in teacher training in Latin America. The cases include both in-service and pre-service programs, in rural and urban environments and public as well as private initiatives, in different countries.
Rather than focusing on the description and evaluation of specific programs, the paper aims at finding common denominators?or "trends"?in new approaches to teacher training. Despite widespread diversity in the nature of the programs reviewed, classroom-based training, continuing education, intensive use of group training and supervision, and an attempt to integrate teacher training in the larger framework of teachers? career regulations emerge as clear common features, as well as an awareness of the need to adapt design to particular local conditions and priorities. Issues of cost-effectiveness and scaling up of innovations are also taken into consideration.
It is hoped that such trends will be helpful in designing future programs in diverse institutional contexts. The paper may also be useful in facilitating the dialogue between governments, private actors and international organizations on key issues to be addressed when planning investments in teacher training.
Last updated: 05/08/07
