Chapter 1 The Long and Winding Road to Inclusion
Educational Policies in Argentina (2003–2015)
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Abstract
This chapter analyses policies for basic education in Argentina from 2003 to 2015. I argue that such policies have aimed at the inclusion of the most disadvantaged groups, at least at the normative and rhetorical levels. However, I also will contend that the emphasis on inclusion has resulted in contradictory effects. Even though the reform has some positive signs, the overall situation of exclusion of a significant portion of society remains a challenge for the educational system. The results of PISA, for instance, and national assessments do not show improvement concerning the quality of education. The notion of inclusion has been central in global discourses about education in the last decades. The malleability of the concept partly explains its preeminence in international discussions. The binary inclusion/exclusion works as a worldwide slogan with certain stability and adapts to the situation of different places. For example, in Sweden or Finland, the focus on inclusion aims at unsuccessful students, usually from low educated and immigrant families. South Africa reads inclusion/exclusion through the lens of ethnic categories, and it relates to “salvation from the dead hand of apartheid.” Having as background the collapse of the Argentine socio-economic structure, starting in the 1970s and culminating in 2001 the crisis, I analyze the most relevant education policies during the Kirchner administrations (2003–2105).