Docentes de dos escuelas multigrado del área rural del municipio de Huehuetenango, Guatemala. Una realidad educativa invisibilizada

Abstract

Objective: The objective of this study is to analyze the educational reality in two schools where an equal number of teachers simultaneously work with more than one grade in the rural area of Huehuetenango. This municipality is one of the largest in the country and faces conditions of poverty, rurality, and indigeneity. This pedagogical modality serves as an alternative for children living in communities characterized by poverty, demographic challenges, and geographical barriers that hinder access to better educational opportunities.

Originality/contribution: we make visible the common reality of many teachers who work in excluded rural contexts, even though they have been technically and methodologically trained for urban areas with contrary realities to these contexts.  We highlight their creative capacity to find methodological alternatives that facilitate their work.

Method: This research follows a qualitative approach, a descriptive design, and has an exploratory scope. We depart from the natural context of the teachers because it allows us to explore, understand, and describe their educational reality as a scarcely studied topic.

Information Strategies/Data Collection:  in-depth interviews with teachers and non-participant observation were used to verify student performance.

Conclusions: the educational reality of multi-grade school teachers shows that they make a great effort to work with students who present deficient initial training.  They create methodological alternatives arising from contextual needs with the support of students from higher grades who become monitors. In addition to the difficulties, there is a shortage of educational materials and resources, and they lack a curriculum specific to their context.