Active and Decolonial Pedagogy through a Transdisciplinary Lens

Abstract

Educational systems in Latin America have long replicated Eurocentric pedagogical models aligned with hegemonic global interests, privileging instrumental knowledge while marginalizing the epistemologies of Indigenous peoples, Afro-descendant communities, and rural populations. This trend has led to fragmented, rigid, and standardized curricula that exclude ancestral knowledge and local experiences, thereby hindering the recognition of other valid ways of knowing. In response to this reality, it is urgent to rethink education from more inclusive, dialogical, and critical perspectives. Within this framework, active pedagogy emerges as a meaningful alternative by placing the learner at the center of the educational process, promoting participation, and fostering the collective construction of knowledge. Decolonial pedagogy, in turn, challenges colonial epistemic logics and reclaims local and community-based knowledge as legitimate sources. From a transdisciplinary perspective, this paper analyzes active and decolonial pedagogies through a transdisciplinary lens. Using a hermeneutical methodology, it offers a critical reflection on the necessary changes in school culture and educational processes. It concludes that the articulation between active pedagogy, decolonial pedagogy, and transdisciplinarity is not only possible but essential for a more human, critical, and liberating education capable of addressing contemporary challenges.