Governing by Testing: Circulation, Psychometric Knowledge, Experts and the “Alliance for Progress” in Latin America During the 1960s and 1970s

Abstract

This paper analyzes the activities, members, and effects of an inter-American expert network for the diffusion of psychometric knowledge, specifically of standardized aptitude testing for university admission in Latin America during the 1960s and 1970s. Within the framework of educational transfer studies, the role of international, nongovernmental, and philanthropic organizations is examined. It is argued that circulation of psychometric knowledge and technologies led to a new governing regime for learning and learners. The paper discusses the effect of convergence and Americanization, in the context of US-promoted “Alliance for Progress,” but also of divergence and resistance.

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Notes on contributors

Cristina Alarcón

Dr. Cristina Alarcón is a research assistant and lecturer in the Department of History of Education at Humboldt University in Berlin, Germany. Her main research interests focus on educational transfer of knowledge and standardized testing technologies, as well as on the comparison of regional and national assessment cultures.