CREFAL and the Production of Audiovisual Materials for Fundamental Education in Latin America (1951–1960)

Abstract

The Regional Centre for Fundamental Education for Latin America (CREFAL), established in 1951 in Pátzcuaro, Mexico, was an institution dedicated to training educators and producing educational materials within the Latin American context. This article, the result of undergraduate research funded by FAPESP, analyzes the Centre's Department of Audiovisual Aids between 1951 and 1960. The main objective is to examine how audiovisual media drove the development—within CREFAL—of a specific methodology for rural and indigenous communities, based on what UNESCO termed "Fundamental Education." Grounded in studies of school material culture and the perspectives of cultural and transnational history, the research methodologically combines a literature review with a documentary analysis of sources from the CREFAL Historical and Documentary Archive. It is based on the understanding that objects embody pedagogical practices and offer insight into the institution's various organizational changes. The study focuses on the Centre's initial operational phase, a period when audiovisual resources gained prominence in training activities—linking theory and practice—and were produced in response to issues identified within the communities. The results demonstrate that these materials were integral to the training process itself, involving production, use, and evaluation by the course participants.