Ethnic cultural diversity and intercultural education founded on the interaction of knowledge

Abstract

This article analyses the interaction between indigenous and pedagogical knowledge in the training of teachers of intercultural education. Indigenous knowledge is inserted in practical and work techniques as well as in social activities whose effi ciency depends on the relationships established between the people that participate. On the other hand, science depends on experimental or formal criterion, where knowledge does not exist without a defi ned discursive practice constituting scientifi c hypothesis, theories and laws. Intercultural knowledge, meanwhile, implies being open to establish a relationship with the Other. Interculturalism is an innovation that proposes a different interpretation of the world. In this case, the training of teachers takes place when cultures from different societies meet, in this case, teachers and students that belong to the western culture and the Mapuche culture.