REFLECTIONS ON THE DIDACTICS OF ENGLISH IN RURAL PRIMARY EDUCATION: CONSTRUCTS FROM THE TEACHERS’ PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

This bibliographic review article, framed within the interpretive paradigm and grounded in the use of grounded theory applied to documentary analysis, aims to consolidate the theoretical and practical constructs associated with the didactics of English in primary education within rural Colombian contexts, taking as a contextual reference the Colegio Integrado Llano Grande, located in the municipality of Girón, Santander. The research approaches English language teaching as a complex phenomenon, shaped by political, epistemological, and pedagogical dimensions that must be understood from a critical and holistic perspective. The study examines how public bilingualism policies, international approaches to foreign language teaching, and teachers’ experiences in rural territories interact to shape distinctive didactic practices, deeply marked by structural inequality and pedagogical creativity. Through a systematic analysis of academic sources published between 2015 and 2024, regulatory documents, doctoral theses, and indexed articles, three conceptual cores were identified: the tension between bilingualism policies and rural teaching practice; the reconfiguration of the teacher’s role as an epistemic and transformative subject; and the re-signification of English as a cultural practice rather than a technical skill. The results reveal that rural teachers develop reflective and context-sensitive practices capable of linking English learning with local identity and social justice. Consequently, the didactics of English in rural settings should be conceived as a praxis of cultural emancipation and educational justice, where English functions as an intercultural mediator rather than as an instrument of domination.