ABSTRACT
Education in socialist Cuba has been considered a human need and a basic right, and schools have been a consistent priority within changing economic strategies. Education in colonial and republican Cuba reflected the character of politics, the limits on mass participation, and the bureaucratic problems of centralization. Centralization changed in the 1959–1970 period as the successful extension of education altered the circumstances within which demands about education would surface. The creation of Poder Popular altered the distribution of formal authority in education with decentralizing reforms that stressed both efficiency and participation. Improvement in the quality of formal education was again the general goal of the reforms called perfeccionamiento continuo, and policies targeted specific dimensions of the organization, content, and administration of the Cuban schools. The politics of education reflected the nature and dynamics of the colonial and republican states.
