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Linking theory and practice in popular education: Conceptual issues and a case of training popular educators in Colombia
Abstract
This study examines the gap between theory and practice in Popular Education, discusses the implications, and explores ways in which training can promote better linkages between the two domains. Its central concern is that this discrepancy hinders conceptual development and theoretically informed practice in the field. The specific vehicles for inquiry are (1) a critical assessment of the relation between theory and practice as seen in the literature and in Latin American programs, and (2) an analysis of a training program for popular educators to illustrate options for linkage. Initially the author presents the characteristics of Popular Education as seen from the perspective of practitioners in the reports of their regional meetings, from a comparative study of 17 Popular Education Programs, and from the literature on Popular Education. He also critically reviews the literature and perspective of researchers to identify divergences between theory and practice, to assess problems that result, and to find alternative strategies for linkage. The study next focuses on training in order to analyze how the gap between theory and practice can be either widened through an "instrumental", approach to training, or narrowed through a "holistic" training strategy. Then the Training Program for Popular Educators at the University del Valle of Colombia is introduced as a program that attempts to implement a holistic training strategy. This case study is based on documents produced during its design and implementation, interviews, and participant observation of the author. It is used to understand how such a program can mediate between the theory of Popular Education and the practice of its participants as popular educators on the community level. The attributes of Popular Education are used as criteria for analyzing this strategy and examining how it put principles into practice. Problems encountered were obstacles in assessing the pertinence of these principles within the context of the program, constraints presented by the University, and habits or attitudes of teachers and participants affecting the adoption of important principles. Finally, there are concluding observations on Popular Education theory and suggestions for how training programs and further research can contribute to the need for linking theory and practice.
Subject Area
Teacher education
Recommended Citation
Acevedo, Mario Albeiro, "Linking theory and practice in popular education: Conceptual issues and a case of training popular educators in Colombia" (1992). Doctoral Dissertations Available from Proquest. AAI9219399.
https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations/AAI9219399