Interculturality at the early years level: The experience of nursery school No. 21, “Rupu Mogñen”

Abstract

This article reconstructs the intercultural education experience that has been underway for nine years at Kindergarten No. 21 Rupu Mogñen in Neuquén. Methodologically, from a qualitative perspective, we examine the fieldwork conducted, including the analysis of documentary sources, participant observations, interviews, and informal communications with the actors involved in the experience. Our theoretical guidelines are based on decolonial thinking, emphasizing the relationships between epistemic violence, education, and interculturality (Lander, 1993; Mignolo, 2006; Castro Gómez, 2007). We draw on concepts of Mapuche knowledge to conduct the analysis.

The analysis addresses the tensions between school knowledge and Mapuche knowledge, rooted in contradictory epistemes. We also address the contradictions between the regulations that frame intercultural education in the province and the methods by which it is implemented.