Abstract

The article reports on the relationship of the Social Work students of the UCV with the popular classes of Valparaíso during the Latin American Reconceptuali-zation Movement. The premise proposes that in the period studied (1967-1973), a process of approximation of the students of Social Work of the UCV with the popular classes took place due to the intensification of the country’s socio-poli-tical contradictions, outside the University. The objective of the article is to cha-racterize the relationship between UCV’s TS students and the popular classes, for which two types of sources were considered: students’ theses and an interview with Vicente Faleiros, professor of the School during the period studied. Two pe-riods are identified (1967-1969 and 1970-1973), analyzed from three dimensions that account for the elements that condition the relationship, namely: the politi-cal conformation of the student body, its theoretical-methodological positions, and practical-interventive relationships. The results show that, during the first period,the student body was interested in the answers to the problems of the popular classes, motivating the search for new references to understand reality; impor-tant are the developmentalist and marginality theories, which are coherent with the observed tendency towards a more tutelary role oriented towards greater participation and integration of the popular classes within society. During the second period, the student body was politicized in more radical terms and, from horizontality, sought to develop perspectives of collaboration and co-construc-tion; theoretically influenced by classical Marxism and dependency theory, the student body oriented its reflection and action depending on the interests of the popular classes, intensifying the relationship with respect to the first stage. We conclude with a discussion about the study’s scope, limits, and projections.