Actors and dilemmas in the Bilingual Intercultural Education policy in Chile: a collective cases study in the context of “dormant” indigenous languages

Abstract

The Intercultural Bilingual Education [EIB] policy in Chile is going through a stage of greater openness in the teaching of indigenous language and culture, which includes people with little or no vitality in their native languages. This educational policy has been questioned due to its compensatory and monocultural bias and its failure to promote interculturality among the entire student population nationwide. Characterized as a bicultural rather than an intercultural policy, it is considered to promote a Westernizing paradigm. However, it is worth noting that in areas where the Indigenous people's presence is a minority —as is the case in various areas of northern Chile— the act of state recognition has influenced the formation of ethnic actors, who now bear the responsibility for the educational work and the reconstruction of their Indigenous languages ​​and cultures. This study aims to characterize the social actors that mobilize this educational policy and its main dilemmas and points of tension. A multiple-case design is followed, selecting a group of nine Atacameño, Colla, and Diaguita educational communities located in the Antofagasta, Atacama, and Coquimbo regions in northern Chile. The fieldwork was conducted between 2022 and 2024. Interviews were conducted with state agents, members of indigenous communities, school principals, and indigenous educators from the groups included in the research. The results indicate the presence of three main actors: institutional, business, and ethnic. The tensions and dilemmas identified include the preponderance of state action, the configuration of a space for collaboration, negotiation, and dispute between actors, the absence of systematic critical or autonomous indigenous initiatives, and the growing interference of mining companies in actions related to education in indigenous languages and cultures. A scenario of re-articulation of neoliberal multiculturalism in educational matters is configured, reflected in the current EIB policy. This characteristic corresponds to the neoliberal multiculturalism model upon which this educational policy has been designed and implemented in Chile, where, despite various reforms, it has not been substantially transformed. In the Atacameña area, for example, the strong presence of the mining industry means that critical voices against this type of public-private relationship are few and far between. Something similar happens on a different scale, in the Colla context. In contrast, the Diaguita territory presents a different scenario, where there are some cases of active conflict, but it is also an area where mining is less prevalent. It is necessary to consider the implications of this form of relationship with the mining industry and its potential impact on inhibiting alternative and critical perspectives. Because those perspectives have also proven to be a fertile ground for Indigenous languages ​​and culture revitalization.