This article raises two basic problems that health administration educators must face in drawing up study plans and selecting pedagogical methods for the proper training of local-level health administrators. One problem is the theory of administration--influenced by scientific theories from other disciplines--and the other is the many objectives of instruction in this field. Some of the factors are examined that have helped prevent the development in health administration instruction of a clear perception that would enable it to identify the problems, methodologies and appropriate solutions at the local level everywhere; this lack of clarity naturally gives rise to a series of conflicts about the educational requirements and those of the administration process itself. The primary activities of a local administrator and the nature of the student's motivation and his objective have to be borne in mind in the context of the teaching and learning experience. The author feels that, apart from considerations on social justice, the right road to the improvement of instruction in this field is essentially to choose the best pedagogical technology for the type of student to which it is addressed.