Building a Territory of Peace: Young Children Engage in Research for Transformation

Abstract

At the José Asunción Silva District Educational Institution and with the support of the ONDAS-COLOMBIA program, qualitative ethnographic research was developed from a horizontal perspective; in this research, 75 children from 4 to 7 years old became coinvestigators to address the violence in their environment and contribute to the construction of a school as a territory of peace. The information was collected through “mica” focus groups, interviews, cartography and observation. The children subsequently analyzed the data via the metaphor of a tree that collects ideas on its leaves, categorizing the information obtained themselves, while the teachers performed a content analysis. To build a territory of peace, it is essential to first identify the actions that cause war or conflict and then focus on those that promote peace. Actions that children identified as generating conflict included the following: interactions with older children, yelling, pushing, and fear. On the other hand, key actions for the construction of peace include the support of close people (family, colleagues and teachers), play, being guardians of the Earth, and hugging as a symbol of reconciliation. A territory of peace is a safe setting in which children can be calm, have fun, learn and share with others. Finally, through this process, young children were able to improve skills such as interest, curiosity, the constant formulation of questions, the design and application of instruments to collect information, the analysis of information and the dissemination of results. investigative skills that allow them to understand the environment.