Gema Martín Seoane

La modalidad de agrupamiento educativo como variable relevante en el análisis de la violencia escolar

School violence is not a new phenomenon, but it has become a special issue in educational research. Accordingly, different studies have recently been conducted at the international and national levels. The results find that school violence is a universal, multidimensional problem ranging from sporadic situations of violence (physical and psychological) to more serious forms such as harassment and bullying. Furthermore, existing research concludes that there is a decline in participation in school violence with age. However, despite the fact that studies have analyzed a wide range of educational levels (from primary to compulsory and non-compulsory secondary education), very few studies have included other educational levels, such as vocational programmes, which could clarify the results. The purpose of this study was to analyze situations of school violence in the educational system in Madrid, taking the variable of educational level into account. To achieve this objective, a representative sample was selected, using a random cluster sample design, with the secondary school as the unit of analysis. The participants were 1,635 students (aged 14-18 years) from compulsory and non-compulsory secondary education, specific/initial training courses and vocational programmes. Students filled out a questionnaire that included different types of violence (exclusion, verbal violence, physical violence and vandalism), from the point of view of the three roles involved (aggressors, victims and spectators). The results revealed that there are specific groups, such as vocational programmes, which are involved more frequently in situations of school violence. The main conclusion of the study is that a student’s educational path seems to be a highly relevant variable. These especially vulnerable groups need to be included in studies of school violence.