Continuities and Discontinuities of the Cardenista Educational Project in the New Mexican School (NEM)

Abstract

The following paper presents a comparative analysis between the current model of basic education in Mexico and the educational proposal advanced by Lázaro Cárdenas. The methodological approach and discussion are guided by the 1934–1940 Six-Year Plan and the Socialist Education Program, contrasted with the 2018–2024 National Development Plan and the 2022 curriculum for basic and secondary education known as the “New Mexican School” (NEM).

This does not imply that the López Obrador administration explicitly declares itself “socialist.” Rather, what emerges from its design is an orientation toward a “humanist” education. The central aim, therefore, is to examine what is meant by humanist education within this administration and to identify the continuities and discontinuities with the Cárdenas period, strictly in relation to educational policy