The formation of a large-scale policy for the production and distribution of school textbooks through COLTED and FENAME (1966–1983)

Abstract

This article examines the formation, between 1966 and 1983, of a large-scale state policy for the production and distribution of school textbooks in Brazil, structured through the activities of COLTED (Technical and Textbook Commission) and FENAME (National Foundation for School Materials) during the civil-military dictatorship. Drawing on official documentation, ministerial reports, and records from the INEP Historical Archive, the study seeks to understand how the MEC–USAID–SNEL agreements enabled the organization of a system that articulated the State and the publishing market in fostering the mass production of printed instructional materials. COLTED (1966–1971) was responsible for planning, defining pedagogical guidelines, and stimulating the publishing industry, aligning textbook content with curricular directives and with the ideological framework of national security, civics, and social integration. Following its dissolution, FENAME (1967–1983) consolidated mechanisms of co-edition, financing, and large-scale distribution, accompanying the expansion of schooling promoted by the educational reforms of 1968 and 1971. The study elucidates not only the core political and economic mechanisms that helped transform textbooks into strategic instruments for disseminating values consistent with the authoritarian project, but also the power relations and conflicts of interest operating within these state apparatuses.