Reducción de la violencia normalizada en el entorno escolar: etnografía educativa en el colegio integrado del Carare de Cimitarra

Abstract

This research aimed to understand the influence of the search for social recognition on the processes of normalization of school violence among high school students at Colegio Integrado del Carare, located in the municipality of Cimitarra, Santander, Colombia. The study emerged from the identification of physical, verbal, and symbolic forms of aggression that have become common patterns of interaction among students, as well as from institutional concerns regarding low performance in Citizenship Competencies assessments and the limitations of traditional approaches to school coexistence. The study was conducted using a qualitative approach, employing educational ethnography as the methodological strategy to understand the meanings students assign to their everyday practices. Data were collected through participant observation, field journals, semi-structured interviews, and social cartography workshops. Subsequently, the information was analyzed through open and axial coding procedures based on the principles of Grounded Theory. The findings revealed that school violence extends beyond the notion of occasional conflict and functions as a relational practice through which students seek recognition, visibility, and social positioning within informal peer hierarchies. Physical aggression, insults, derogatory nicknames, and acts of humiliation are frequently reinterpreted as games, jokes, or playful interactions, facilitating their legitimization and normalization. Furthermore, experiences of disrespect, invisibility, and lack of social appreciation were found to encourage some students to use violence as a means of gaining acceptance and social prestige. The study concludes that the normalization of school violence is closely linked to the search for social recognition and to institutional, familial, and cultural dynamics that contribute to its reproduction. Consequently, it recommends strengthening citizenship competencies, promoting school cultures based on recognition, and implementing preventive pedagogical strategies aimed at fostering relationships grounded in respect, democratic participation, and human dignity.