Resumo

VALENTE, Ana Lúcia E. F.. State, education and ethnicity: the Belgian experience. Cad. Pesqui. [online]. 1998, n.105, pp.135-159. ISSN 0100-1574.

The use of the concept "ethnicity" and its correlates has not been consensual in the academic-scientific environment. Difficulties of various types have led to questioning its value as a tool of analysis. Outstanding among them are the activation of ethnic identities with high power to exlude and alter in the present historical context of globalization. In spite of this, the text defends its employment exactly because, due to its ambiguity, it manages to be an expression of the slippery reality it pretends to grasp. However, doubts about the instrumentality of concepts demand that we procure, beyond abstractions, to seek out their validity for understanding concrete social situations. In this sense, the text seeks to analyze the historical process of the constitution of the Belgian State, placing in evidence the establishment of ethnic frontiers by the Flemish and francophones and the role of education as a fundamental element in political strategy. Methodologically, the analysis is anchored in Barth's proposals on ethnicity, attempting to incorporate elements of his criticism.

Palavras-chave : Bélgica; Educação; Etnias; Barth, F.; Etnologia.

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