Interview with Nicolás Arata: “Thinking historically prevents us from the syndrome of believing that the party starts when you arrive.”

Abstract

Contextualization

Nicolás Arata is a leading figure in the field of the History of Education, current President of the Argentine Society for Research and Teaching in the History of Education, and professor at the University of Buenos Aires (UBA) and the National Pedagogical University (UNIPE).

In July 2025, he visited the city of Paraná in the province of Entre Ríos, Argentina, as part of various academic activities that focused on the relationship between archives and the History of Education, and the contributions of history to teacher training.

It is important to emphasize that the aim is to explore and reconstruct Arata's educational and research trajectory, while also delving into some of the current emerging issues in the field of education and the history of education, in dialogue with teacher training, within a national context of underfunding of the Argentine university and scientific system.

This interview takes place at the end of her stay in the city and was conducted by students and recent graduates of the Teacher Training and Bachelor's Degree in Educational Sciences of the National University of Entre Ríos (UNER), and was co-organized by the chairs of the aforementioned career, History of Thought and History of Education, the CONICET-UNER Institute of Social Studies and the Paraná Section of the Teachers' Union Association of Entre Ríos, with the collaboration of the professors of Social History of Argentine Education, FCEDu-UNER.