Assemblies as a way of democratizing public schools: the experience of Bachilleratos Populares in Argentina

Abstract

This article, of a qualitative nature, aims to analyze assemblies as a way of democratizing public schools. The object is the experiences carried out in Argentine schools for young people and adults called Bachilleratos Populares (BPs). BPs are classified as public, popular and self-managed schools, differentiated by these characteristics from conventional schools for young people and adults. The analysis was carried out through the reading and interpretation of books, articles, dissertations, theses and documents referring to BPs and other organizations linked to them, such as through the analysis of the constitution and organization of schools perceived through empirical visits to some BPs. It was found that assembly, in the context of BPs, presents itself as an important tool for democratizing the school, in addition to promoting the organization and collective response of the working class to their concerns, opposing the individualism expressed in conventional schools governed by neoliberal educational policies.