Teacher Training in Latin America: Innovations and Trends

On average, teachers' qualifications in Latin America fall short of what is needed to implement and sustain the education reforms under way in most countries. Large investments in teacher training, both pre-service and in-service have been made and will continue to be made by the governments of the region in recognition of this fact, often with the support of the IDB and other international organizations. This paper responds to the growing demand for new approaches to the design of teacher training components in education reforms. This demand reflects widespread disappointment with the effectiveness of traditional methods and the principles upon which they are organized. The paper builds on the existing literature on the subject around the world but draws its conclusions from eight case studies on innovations in teacher training in Latin America. The cases include both in-service and pre-service programs, in rural and urban environments and public as well as private initiatives, in different countries.