Hybrid violence, a school-based perspective in Colombia

Abstract

Schools in Colombia have been violently assaulted by various armed groups, from an ethnographic research exercise that aimed to identify characteristics of hybrid violence associated with the dynamics of armed conflict, perpetuated against schools, as well as to establish suggestions and guidelines for its approach. The purpose is to broaden the understanding of the situation of schools and educational communities in the country. This research process was carried out in 9 PDET zones in the Department of Caquetá, in which 9 focus groups and 34 interviews were conducted, with a total participation of 190 teachers and school administrators from the official sector.

The research is divide into 4 categories of analysis: incidence of the armed   conflict in schools, related characteristics of the educational community, violence in schools and finally a culture of peace in school settings.  The conclusion identifies several realities or conditions such as the loneliness and lack of protection that plague rural schools in Colombia. Direct violence is still present in educational communities, the lack of guarantees and decent teaching conditions in rural areas, the absence of institutions responsible for the development of children and young adults, and finally further commitment of teachers to rural communities in the country.