Resumen

VARAS, Ibar. TENDENCIAS PREDOMINANTES DE LA EDUCACIÓN CONTEMPORÁNEA. Investigación y Postgrado [online]. 2003, vol.18, n.1, pp.46-57. ISSN 1316-0087.

This work describes the conditions in which theory in general, and educational theory in particular, spring up. It assumes a shared perspective in the scientific communities when new paradigms appear. Then it stresses the presence in contemporary education of the dominant theoretical schools the author identifies as pragmatism, materialism, and constructivism. The most important theoretical features of each such school are discussed and, in conclusion, it is asserted that education is at bottom an ethical challenge.

Palabras clave : theory; pragmatism; materialism; constructivism; paradigm.