The state of media education in Latin America

Abstract

This chapter presents an overview of the state of media education in Latin America. It begins with a historical contextualisation and proceeds to analyse five dimensions: socio-political context, regulatory framework, social actors, teacher training and academic production. Media education has had a varied presence in national policies in this region and hasnot adequately responded to the citizen rights approach or the theoretical tradition of educomunicación. Latin American governments have made efforts to connect schools with technology, improve education quality and overcome access gaps. Moreover, teacher education and qualification programmes on the use of this media have been undertaken. However, the results are not positive, as technological action has taken precedence over pedagogic action. This chapter concludes with a research andaction agenda, stemming from the contributions of experts and of results from the national chapters included in this book.