EDUCATIONAL CONDITIONS, TEACHERS AND FAMILIES OF THE RURAL SCHOOL DURING AND AFTER THE ARMED CONFLICT IN MESETAS, META, COLOMBIA

Abstract

The objective of this research was to describe the changes that occurred in the educational, teaching and family conditions of rural public primary schools in Mesetas, Meta Department, Colombia, during the armed conflict and after the peace agreements between 2015 and 2020. A holistic understanding of science was employed, and a descriptive, retrospective, multivariate field study design was conducted. The Jardín de Peñas Educational Institution in Mesetas served as the unit of study. The informants were eight teachers selected for their seniority at the institution and for providing the most information about the conflict. In-depth interviews were conducted, and a qualitative data analysis was performed using ATLAS.ti software. In summary, the findings indicated that before the peace agreements, parents were afraid to send their children to school, children's attendance and academic performance were average, and violent acts were continuous the schools were largely neglected, and teaching was difficult due to the violence. The dynamics of the violence have changed since the agreements; there are no longer any fightings or bombings. Violence has practically disappeared after the agreements, but common criminals are committing various crimes now that the armed group, which controlled security in the region, has vanished. Before the agreements, the government offered little support; afterward, aid arrived more frequently.