Spreading the word on education.

• Author: Paldao, Carlos E.
• Position: La Educacion magazine

With the publication of the latest issue of La Eduacion, Revista Interamericana de Desarrollo Educativo, the magazine celebrated its 36th anniversary. It was first published in January 1956 after the 10th Inter-American Conference (Caracas, Venezuela, 1954) recommended the creation of a magazine that would contribute to the orientation of educators, within an inter-American context, and facilitate the exchange of information between organizations working in the field of education. In the letter from the editor in the first issue, Guillermo Nannetti, who directed the Education Division of the then Pan-American Union, stated that La Educacion should "first of all, inform about what is taking place in education, and secondly, study the problems related to the practices and doctrines of teaching programs in the Americas." The new publication circulated widely, fulfilling the expectations of teachers and educational institutions at both the regional and international level.

In keeping with a growing concern for the enhancement of education throughout the Hemisphere, the Inter-American Cultural Council (CIC) established the Regional Program for the Development of Education (PREDE) at its 5th annual meeting in Maracay, Venezuela. PREDE was given the following mandates: to stimulate and complement national efforts to elevate the quality of education and accelerate the expansion of educational systems, adjusting them more adequately to the demands of economic, social and cultural development; to promote research and the use of modern methods in education and related fields; to promote Latin American integration through education, with the goal of raising the region's economic and social levels; and, to further respect for the educational and cultural traditions of different peoples.

In La Educacion, PREDE found a vehicle for the dissemination of information, cooperation and timely exchange. Currently, this magazine is a pluralistic forum for the publication of articles, interviews, news, bibliographical summaries and general information on education. Produced quarterly, with a run of 9,000 issues, La Educacion reaches 138 countries.

This magazine is part of an integrated plan which PREDE has been developing during the last few years in the fields of publication, communication and educational exchange. The publications program is under the direction of the Editorial Center of the OAS Department of Educational Affairs, which is part of the...