178
Coexistence management, perception of
the coordinator and the school counselor:
Phenomenological study
Liliana Esther Molina Isaza1
To reference this article / Cómo citar este artículo / Para
citar este artigo: Molina-Isaza, L. E. (2025). Coexistence
management, perception of the coordinator and the school counselor:
Phenomenological study. Revista UNIMAR, 43(1), 178-195 https://doi.
org/10.31948/ru.v43i1.4398
Reception date: September 28, 2024
Review date: November 8, 2024
Approval date: January 21, 2025
Abstract
This article aims to characterize coexistence management in schools from the
perspective of school administrators, specifically the coordinator and the school
counselor, considering that few studies focus on these two social actors. This
study was framed in a qualitative approach, of phenomenological type, and
was complemented by a documentary analysis of the formats of coexistence
management. Among the main findings, it was identified that school counselors
seek to restore interpersonal relationships through listening and dialogue
to generate solutions to conflicts of school coexistence; the coordinator, for
his part, plays the role of mediator, conciliator, and negotiator. While there
is no established model for managing coexistence, the treatment of these
cases is still based on a sanction-correction scheme. However, strategies to
promote healthy coexistence complement school guidance and coordination.
A coexistence management model must have the following characteristics: 1)
Integrate management, planning, implementation, evaluation, and monitoring
components that strengthen peaceful coexistence; 2) Be based on norms,
rules, and laws that regulate the behavior of students and the interaction of
the educational community; 3) Formalize management procedures through
documents that guarantee due process; 4) Define goals, objectives, and
indicators that contribute to the continuous improvement of school life; 5) Be
flexible, allowing adaptation to the needs of students’ life and changes in the
social environment; and 6) Have a defined focus.
Keywords: managing coexistence; peaceful coexistence; conflict; teaching
directive; school counselor; violence
1 Secretaría de Educación de Córdoba, Montería, Colombia. E-mail: lilianamolinaisaza@gmail.com
Article result of the research entitled: Modelo de gestión de la convivencia escolar basado en la inteligencia emocional para la
resolución de conflictos en instituciones educativas públicas de Montería, developed from June 1st 2019 to december 30 2021 in
Montería, Córdoba, Colombia.
Revista Unimar Enero-Junio 2025
e-ISSN: 2216-0116 ISSN: 0120-4327 DOI: https://doi.org/10.31948/rev.unimar
Rev. Unimar Vol. 43 No. 1 pp. 178-195
179
Gestión de la convivencia, percepción del coordinador
y orientador escolar: estudio fenomenológico
Resumen
Este artículo tiene como objetivo caracterizar la gestión de la convivencia escolar
desde la perspectiva de los directivos docentes: coordinador y orientador
escolar, considerando que son pocos los estudios que se centran en estos dos
actores sociales. Este estudio se enmarcó en un enfoque cualitativo, de tipo
fenomenológico, y se complementó con un análisis documental de los formatos
de gestión de la convivencia. Entre los principales hallazgos, se identificó que
los orientadores escolares buscan restaurar las relaciones interpersonales
a través de la escucha y el diálogo, con el fin de generar soluciones a los
conflictos de convivencia escolar; por su parte, el coordinador ejerce un
rol de mediador, conciliador y negociador. Aunque no existe un modelo de
gestión de convivencia definido, la atención a estos casos sigue basándose en
un esquema de sanción-corrección. No obstante, la orientación escolar y la
coordinación se complementan mediante estrategias que favorecen la mejora
de la convivencia. Un modelo de gestión de la convivencia debe presentar las
siguientes características: 1) integrar componentes de la gestión, planeación,
ejecución, evaluación y seguimiento que fortalezcan la convivencia pacífica;
2) fundamentarse en normas, reglas y leyes que regulan las conductas de los
estudiantes y las formas de interactuar de la comunidad educativa; 3) formalizar
los procedimientos de gestión mediante documentos que garanticen el debido
proceso; 4) definir metas, objetivos e indicadores que contribuyan a mejorar
continuamente la convivencia escolar; 5) ser flexible, permitiendo adaptarse
a las necesidades convivenciales de los estudiantes y las transformaciones del
entorno social, y 6) contar con un enfoque definido.
Palabras clave: gestión de la convivencia, convivencia pacífica, conflicto,
directivo docente, orientador escolar, violencia
Gestão da convivência, percepção do coordenador e
o orientador escolar: estudo fenomenológico
Resumo
Este artigo tem como objetivo, caracterizar a gestão da convivência nas
escolas a partir da perspectiva dos gestores escolares, especificamente do
coordenador e do orientador escolar, tendo em vista que poucos estudos se
concentram nesses dois atores sociais. Este estudo foi enquadrado em uma
abordagem qualitativa, de tipo fenomenológico, e complementado por uma
análise documental dos formatos de gestão da convivência. Entre os principais
achados, identificou-se que os orientadores escolares buscam restabelecer as
relações interpessoais por meio da escuta e do diálogo para gerar soluções para
os conflitos da convivência escolar; o coordenador, por sua vez, desempenha o
papel de mediador, conciliador e negociador. Embora não haja um modelo definido
Revista Unimar Enero-Junio 2025
e-ISSN: 2216-0116 ISSN: 0120-4327 DOI: https://doi.org/10.31948/rev.unimar
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180
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Rev. Unimar Vol. 43 No. 1 pp. 178-195
para gerenciar a coexistência, o tratamento desses casos ainda é baseado em
um esquema de sanção-correção. No entanto, estratégias para promover a
coexistência saudável complementam a orientação e a coordenação escolar.
Um modelo de gestão da coexistência deve ter as seguintes características
1) Integrar componentes de gestão, planejamento, implementação, avaliação
e monitoramento que fortaleçam a coexistência pacífica; 2) Ser baseada em
normas, regras e leis que regulam o comportamento dos alunos e a interação da
comunidade educacional; 3) Formalizar procedimentos de gestão por meio de
documentos que garantam o devido processo legal; 4) Definir metas, objetivos
e indicadores que contribuam para a melhoria contínua da vida escolar; 5)
Ser flexível, permitindo adaptação às necessidades da vida dos alunos e às
mudanças do meio social; e 6) Ter foco definido.
Palavras-chave: gestão da convivência; convivência pacífica; conflito;
diretivo docente; orientador escolar; violência
Introduction
The problem that gave rise to this study is
that the management of school coexistence is
currently based on punitive models that use
sanctions and punishments to resolve conflict
situations (Torrego, 2006; Dávila Balsera &
Naya, 2023). In some cases, the procedures
that structure and configure such management
are not studied in depth.
Therefore, the central objective of this
research was to characterize aspects of the
management of school coexistence in public
educational institutions in the city of Montería,
through the lived experiences of the teaching
directors and school counselors involved in the
coexistence processes. It should be clarified
that the management of school coexistence
is considered a fundamental mediating
component to efficiently and effectively
face the conflict situations that arise in any
educational community (Rioseco & Barría,
2021) and should focus on the analysis of the
behaviors, experiences, expressions, emotions,
and feelings of students, articulated with the
regulations and their good attitude towards
coexistence, in such a way that school violence
or the elements related to it are reduced.
School coexistence is defined as «the action
of living with others in the school context
peacefully and harmoniously» (Ministerio
de Educación Nacional [MEN], 2014, p. 25);
Furthermore, it is conceived as a product of the
interactions of the members of the educational
community, which is structured as a group and
dynamically, and changes over time as these
interactions change (Rivera et al., 2017). This
coexistence includes a continuous construction
involving learning in conflict regulation, respect,
and collective agreement in the face of different
situations (Sandoval, as cited in Cantor, 2018).
Coexistence is one of the four pillars of education,
as expressed by Delors (1996): «learning to
live together» (p. 16). Therefore, coexistence
constitutes one of the most important aspects
of school activities, complementing each other
and academics to comprehensively educate the
individual (Nova, 2021).
However, schools are a likely place for conflicts
to arise; in these cases, teachers are the first
to be called upon to mediate and help students
according to each situation and the current
regulations. However, the formulation of action
plans to direct and organize all the necessary
frameworks for an adequate school climate
falls to school leaders (Molina, 2023). Thus,
according to the MEN (2014), coordinators
must promote and foster healthy coexistence
and an appropriate climate in the educational
institution, under the regulations, rights and
duties, incentives, and other rules established
in the Coexistence Manual. In this context, it is
noted that coordinators generally manage many
processes and pay more attention to academics,
since educational institutions are measured by
the results of external and internal tests, rather
than by healthy coexistence. In this sense, the
management of coexistence sometimes takes a
back seat.
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For their part, school counselors play a crucial
role in managing school coexistence, as they
provide different psychological approaches
through which cases can be treated systemically
and professionally, recognizing elements that act
as protective factors related to comprehensive
training (Soto, 2022). According to the
MEN (2014), counselors must contribute to
harmonious coexistence and promote effective
communication and participation in the school
community. From their role, they must include
integration into institutional processes and
application of psychosocial care protocols and
routes, establishing timely alerts to develop
comprehensive care strategies, and designing
plans aimed at preventing psychosocial risks
and social problems that affect students.
However, school counselors often lack the
support of teachers, parents, and government
agencies to monitor students or intervene in
situations of social exclusion that warrant it.
In addition, in Colombia, the ratio of students
to counselors is 1:500, which means that each
professional is assigned at least 500 students,
and in many cases, this number is exceeded,
which overloads them with work and makes it
difficult to manage social distancing.
From this perspective, it is worth examining
what happens to social actors such as the
coordinator and the school counselor, who
are part of the phenomenon under study and
are protagonists of the educational dynamics
and participants in the management of school
coexistence. In the study of school coexistence,
the focus is generally on teachers and students,
and their actions within the coexistence
processes are given less importance. Therefore,
it is necessary to understand the perspective of
the educational reality of teaching directors and
school counselors regarding the management of
school coexistence.
According to the MEN (2014), there are four
relevant actions to manage coexistence in
schools: prevention, attention, promotion, and
monitoring of conflict situations, constituting
the comprehensive care route for coexistence in
schools. In particular, coexistence management
is a relevant factor in the school context and
refers to promoting and maintaining a stable,
inclusive, and respectful environment. Its basic
objective is to promote harmonious coexistence,
cultivate life skills, and pay attention to and
monitor problems to prevent conflicts from
leading to violence in schools (Molina-Isaza &
Nova-Herrera, 2023).
Violence in schools has become a widely studied
topic (Galtung, 1998.; Cedeño, 2020), complex,
and interesting (Herrera & Frausto, 2021),
important at the state level and of concern to
the educational community (Saucedo & Guzmán,
2018), It is generated by the inadequate
resolution of conflicts due to differences and
different positions that are not accepted by the
parties (Galtung, 1998). This problem is common
in schools, since there is always the possibility
of conflict when interacting with others.
In Colombia, by 2023, 70% of students reported
having experienced some type of violence at
school (Ministerio de Salud y Protección Social,
2023). This index poses challenges to education,
its management, and the institutions that
drive the processes of coexistence in schools,
including the actors involved in the educational
reality under study.
Methodology
Focus and design
Qualitative approach, with an interpretive
phenomenological design. For Sandín (2003),
this is a methodological task that aims at a
deeper understanding of social and educational
phenomena, the transformation of socio-
educational situations and practices, decision-
making, and the discovery and formation
of an organized structure of knowledge. The
fundamental purpose of this type of research,
according to Duque and Aristizábal (2019), is
that there is a tendency to focus on experiences
that acquire a particular meaning, some of which
are unusual and have a unique experiential
value for those who experience them. In
addition, qualitative methods and instruments
offer a more comprehensive perspective on
social phenomena that are relevant to reality
and allow for deeper conclusions to be drawn
(Alegre, 2022).
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Rev. Unimar Vol. 43 No. 1 pp. 178-195
In other words, this study sought to interpret, from the experiences, thoughts, practices, and
perspectives of school directors, coordinators, and school counselors, the management of school
coexistence and the ways of managing school coexistence —analysis categories— (see Table 1).
Table 1
Categories and subcategories of analysis
Thematic
Unit Category Subcategory
School coexistence
Characteristics of School
Coexistence Management
Relevance of coexistence management
Attention to school conicts
Prevention of school conicts
Monitoring school conicts
Actions to improve school coexistence
Management procedures
for resolving school
conicts
School conict resolution route
School conict monitoring route
Note. Based on Molina (2022).
Sample and participating actors
The sample of voluntary participants in the research consisted of six coordinating directors of
education, all of them men, and six school counselors, five of them women, for a total of twelve
people whose professions are related to the fields of administration, education, psychology, or
related fields. According to Sandín (2003), this is an acceptable sample, since qualitative studies
usually involve between five and twenty-five participants. The coordinating teachers and school
counselors who participated in the interview met the following inclusion criteria 1) permanence in
the educational institution for more than three years; 2) directs the coexistence and discipline of
the institution within their functions; 3) willingness to provide the forms or documents necessary
for the study; 4) the place where they work has the basic secondary and middle level; 5) willingness
to respond to the interview. Regarding the exclusion criteria, only two were considered: 1) having
less than three years in the institution and 2) not having among their functions, the care of
coexistence (see Table 2).
Table 2
Sample of volunteer study participants
No. Educational Institution Actors participating in the interview
1 IE Camilo Torres Mocarí 2 coordinators
2 IE Santa María Goretti Coordinator Counselor
3 IE Nacional Coordinator
4 IE Mogambo Counselor Coordinator
5 IE Normal Superior Coordinator Counselor
6 IE Robinson Pitalua Counselor
7 IE Rancho Grande Counselor
8 IE Antonio Nariño Counselor
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For a better understanding of the results, the ID identities were organized using distinctive letters
and a sequential number as follows: 1) the first two identification units represent the position:
Principal (DD), School Counselor (OE); 2) the third unit corresponds to the gender: male (M) or
female (F); and 3) the fourth unit corresponds to a consecutive number of the respondents.
Data Collection Techniques and Instruments
The methodological approaches used in this study are based on the contributions of Creswell
(cited in Sandín, 2003). Participants were asked to describe their experiences through an in-depth
interview using a semi-structured questionnaire (see Table 3)
Table 3
Questions in each study subcategory
Subcategory Questions to coordinators Questions to School counselors
Relevance of
coexistence
management
Does the institution have a school
coexistence management model?
Do you know what criteria were used
for its denition?
Who participated?
Do you think the model is relevant to
the situations presented?
What limitations does it have?
Does the institution have a school
coexistence management model?
Do you know the criteria used to
dene it?
Who participated?
From your perspective, which of
the processes in school coexistence
management (prevention, care,
promotion, and follow-up) has the
greatest impact on school guidance
to ensure healthy coexistence?
Do you consider the role of the
school guidance counselor to be
fundamental in managing school
coexistence? Why or why not?
Do you think the model is relevant to
the situations that arise?
What limitations does it have?
Preventing
School
Conicts
What are the main strategies used to
prevent school conicts and promote
healthy coexistence?
What mechanisms or strategies are
used in school counseling to prevent
school conicts and violence?
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Subcategory Questions to coordinators Questions to School counselors
Attention to
school conicts
What is your role as coordinator in
the processes for addressing conict
situations in the educational institution?
When you address a conict situation,
do you consider the reasons,
moods, and situations the student is
experiencing?
What methodological approach is used
to address conict or violent situations
in the educational institution?
Who is involved in each process?
What conict resolution processes
are handled at the educational
institution?
Who is involved?
When you address a conict
situation, do you investigate the
student’s motives, moods, and
circumstances?
Monitoring
School
Conicts
Is there any follow-up on conict
situations or students who are repeat
oenders?
What strategies and formats are used?
What strategies do you use to
monitor conict situations or
students who are repeat oenders?
Promoting
healthy
coexistence
What activities and strategies are
school administrations advising on to
promote healthy coexistence within the
educational institution?
What actions are being implemented
at the institutional level to improve
school coexistence?
Note. Based on Molina (2022).
On the other hand, a qualitative content analysis was carried out, as it is a «research technique
that aims to formulate, from certain data, reproducible and valid conclusions that can be applied to
their context» (Krippendorff, 1980/1990, p. 28). The qualitative documentary review was applied
to the formats and protocols used to deal with situations of conflict, indiscipline, or cases of pupils
misbehaving and hindering an environment conducive to learning and social interaction, which are
also evidence of systematic and progressive work to improve coexistence in the school.
Stages of the investigation
The development of the methodology was carried out based on what was proposed by Duque and
Aristizábal (2019) (see Figura 1).
Figure 1
Stages of the interpretive phenomenological study
In the first phase, the focus was on the educational institutions and the principals and counselors
to be interviewed. In the second stage, the central research questions were formulated: What
are the characteristics of school coexistence management in public educational institutions in
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Rev. Unimar Vol. 43 No. 1 pp. 178-195
Montería? And what are the ways of managing school coexistence in public educational institutions
in Montería? These determined the organization of the questionnaire questions, which were
submitted to an expert for evaluation. The third stage focused on data collection, through a semi-
structured interview with school coordinators and counselors.
In the fourth step, the interviews were transcribed using different methods, and significant aspects
were also noted. Subsequently, emerging themes or codes were identified, considering their
importance and frequency in the responses, which were grouped according to their relationships
(Hernández et al., 2014). A table was also created, bearing in mind the overarching themes and
the themes grouped into subcategories according to their relationships. The emerging themes were
derived from the data analysis, which prompted discussions and interpretations that contrasted with
the frame of reference used in this study (see Figure 2).
Figure 2
Management of school coexistence
This approach enriched the process and minimized bias in the data. Internal reliability, consistent
with the first research objective, was demonstrated in the results obtained through data triangulation
(Molina, 2022), which involved contrasting information and methods. These comparisons proved
useful in limiting the impact of inappropriate extrapolations and hasty conclusions.
In the fifth stage, the results were written up, and narrated according to the emerging themes
found, and some examples of the stories of the participating actors were captured. In the final
stage, the contribution of the approach was evaluated and a phenomenological report of the
results was presented.
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Results
The results of a qualitative study using phenomenological approaches are presented. The first
finding relates to the general characteristics of a school coexistence management model in public
educational institutions in the city of Montería; the second finding relates to the coexistence
management procedures related to the management of conflict situations.
1. Characteristics of school coexistence management
The management of coexistence in schools was characterized by subcategories of analysis according
to the perspective of school coordinators and counselors, who shared their experiences on the
relevance of managing coexistence, preventing and addressing school conflicts, promoting healthy
coexistence in schools, and monitoring school conflicts (see Tables 4, 5, 6 y 7).
Table 4
Relevance
Relevance of school coexistence management
Educational institutions did not have a defined school coexistence management model but they
did have tools such as Coexistence Manual, Coexistence Plan, Coexistence Protocols, Coexistence
Functions, PEI, Guide 49, Coexistence Parameters, Coexistence Pact (emerging codes); however,
from their functions, these direct the procedures and activities for the attention, promotion,
monitoring, and prevention of school conflicts.
«The word model is not used, but here we have our Coexistence Manual and it is directed by Law
1620 on school coexistence» (DDH2, personal communication).
«We don’t have a model as such; we have parameters for some things, for some situations that
arise in the institution amid coexistence» (OEM8, personal communication).
The coordinators report that although there is no established model for managing coexistence,
in some cases the rules, strategies, plans, and the coexistence manual are relevant to the
institution because they show results in improving coexistence in schools. The intervention of
governmental organizations is limited because of the lack of support in Type III situations, such
as sexual abuse, suicide attempts, and drug use and sales.
On the other hand, school counselors stated that the coexistence management model or actions
to deal with school conflicts were not relevant due to internal and external variables of the
institution.
«I think all models have limitations. We try to work in an integrated way, but sometimes we find
variables like parents who don’t contribute much» (OEM10, personal communication).
«One of the limitations is that the model is generalized; it is not particular and cannot be studied
in individual cases» (OEM8, personal communication).
The limitations are imposed by the law itself; for example, if a Type III case arises, we must
immediately refer it to either the ICBF, Child and Adolescent Protection Agency, the Child and
Adolescent Police, or the Family Police Station; then, we immediately disconnect from the
case. (DDH3, personal communication)
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Relevance of school coexistence management
From the counselors’ point of view, the coexistence management procedures that have the
greatest impact on their role are care monitoring or promotion; others coincide in prevention or
promotion, and the rest, influence all processes.
«There is more work to be done, but I believe, to be honest, that where there is more participation
and dynamism, I think it is in the attention; from my perspective, it is in the attention at the
moment» (OEM7, personal communication).
«I think that follow-up because sometimes promotion is good, but I feel that it doesn’t give as
much result as when you follow up on situations with students» (OEM8, personal communication).
«Promotion and prevention are very important; the goal is to prevent situations from arising,
always working for healthy coexistence, respect, and tolerance» (OEM9, personal communication).
School counselors also emphasized the importance of their role in managing coexistence in
schools, as they help prevent conflict situations from recurring or becoming more complex by
supporting students and parents in the coexistence process and working with the community.
«Essential; we send weekly messages from the school leadership so that the students have a
sense of support, even though they are at home in this virtual environment» (OEM9, personal
communication).
Although there is no defined model for managing coexistence, principals and school counselors
tend to adopt a normative approach, following what is established by law. This implies a more
punitive approach, as it has shown positive results in some cases and not in others. It is worth
noting that government agencies have had difficulties in dealing with situations such as abuse,
hallucinogen use, and violence due to a lack of follow-up on the cases, the environment, and the
students’ families.
Table 5
Prevention
Prevention of school conflicts
There are a variety of strategies and mechanisms used by both school coordinators and
school counselors to prevent conflict at school. These include prevention activities, lectures
and workshops, student training, parenting schools, prevention projects, monitoring of student
difficulties, use of videos and case studies, implementation of student mediation programs in
the classroom, inclusion of prevention strategies in the coexistence handbook, preventive work
in the classroom, and ongoing dialogue with students.
«Both the teachers and we, the administrators, are attentive to the students; I am even more
so since I am in the Coexistence Department; we are attentive to the difficulties the child has»
(DDH2, personal communication).
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Table 6
Attention
Attention to school conflicts
The role of the coordinating school principal in resolving school conflicts is focused on the
mediation of coexistence situations, negotiation, facilitation of reconciliation processes, and the
exercise of arbitration.
«Ensure the welfare and well-being of students through reconciliation processes that lead to
friendly and cordial treatment among them» (DDH6, personal communication).
To understand the reasons, moods, and situations that students face, school leaders and
counselors need to inquire, investigate, and diagnose their context. This includes understanding
the nature of the conflict, problems at home, relationships with peers, and the environment. It is
also necessary to analyze the origin of the difficulty, assess their emotional state, the expression
of their feelings and thoughts, and their family and social environment. All of this allows for a
comprehensive approach to addressing situations in the school environment.
«In school counseling and in the coexistence section, we don’t limit ourselves to the situation of
what happened; we go further, we do individual intervention; we always ask about the student»
(OEM7, personal communication).
Regarding the methodological route or procedures used to address situations of conflict or violence
at school, the counselors and coordinators agreed on the use of the following mechanisms:
standards established in the Coexistence Manual, Law 1620, regular channel, internal or external
route, institutional actors involved in addressing conflict situations, institutions and organizations
that influence the care, and finally, the involvement of parents and reporting the situation.
«Depending on the nature of the situation, route 1620 is activated so that the appropriate
treatment is given to said case» (OEH11, personal communication).
«If the situation arises in the classroom, we have established regular procedures that are clearly
outlined in the Coexistence Handbook» (OEM8, personal communication)
Table 7
Promotion
Promotion for healthy coexistence
The strategies and measures to be implemented at the educational level, both at the level
of coordination and at the level of teaching to promote living together at school, include the
following: working as a team to live together, dialogues, projects, or moral education, school
programs, talks with students, and training activities.
«We are constantly going into classrooms; we always have the spaces available to address this
topic through talks and workshops» (OEH12, personal communication).
Well, to promote healthy coexistence, activities that go hand in hand with the purpose of the
institution are carried out, which is to promote fraternity and camaraderie among students,
such as the Week of Peace, Love and Friendship, a song festival, among others. (OEM10,
personal communication)
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Rev. Unimar Vol. 43 No. 1 pp. 178-195
Table 8
Monitoring
Monitoring school conflicts
In this process, the commitment of students to change their attitudes toward school life is
essential. This process is achieved through regular, lifelong learning and monitoring to improve
their behavior. Various recording formats are also used, including the following: situation formats,
dialogue reports, educational sanctions, disciplinary commitments, conditional enrollment,
cumulative student records, disciplinary forms, student observers, and follow-up formats.
If the student is being monitored, the first step is to ensure the situation doesn’t happen again.
A disciplinary form is used and the student must sign it with the parent. If a conflict warrants
involving the parent, the parent must be involved. (DDH1, personal communication)
2. Coexistence management procedures related to the handling of conflict situations.
By reviewing the documents of the formats used to deal with conflict situations, it is possible
to verify actions demonstrating the management of coexistence within educational institutions
through two defined procedures: 1) attention to school conflicts, and 2) monitoring of school
conflicts.
Attention to school conflicts
The procedures for dealing with situations that affect coexistence in Colombia are based on the
response path provided for in Law 1620 of 2013 y su Decree 1965 of 2013. This law presents three
types of situations: Type I, Type II, and Type III. In educational institutions, Type I situations
are generally handled in the classroom by teachers, who give a verbal warning; however, if
the student recurs, the coordinator takes the case based on a prior report from the teacher.
In addition, in the case of school violence, any teacher, principal, or counselor can reprimand
students or mediate the conflict.
If conflicts remain unresolved and violence occurs through physical, psychological, or verbal
aggression, if it is systematic, the conflicts will be addressed by the Coordination Team and referred
to the School Counselor. If there is physical harm without disability or cyber-related harm, they
become Type II situations and are referred to an appropriate government agency depending on
the severity. In these cases, the Care Route Protocols will be considered following the law.
If the condition is a Type III situation, it is immediately referred to the government agencies
responsible for the safety of children and adolescents. In this case, the following documentation
must be provided: cohabitation situation forms, dialogue protocols, educational sanction forms,
and disciplinary commitment forms. It should be noted that the names of each form vary from
institution to institution, but their purpose is the same: to improve the student’s behavior. In
terms of care, parents should be informed of the situation their children are facing, as they play a
very important role in reinforcing positive behaviors at home (see Figura 3).
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Figure 3
Procedimiento de atención
Note. Based on Molina (2022).
Monitoring school conflicts
The follow-up procedures are based on dealing with conflict situations; they differ from these in that
the problem is reviewed periodically; generally, they deal with Type II and III situations. In addition,
the intervention of the school counselor is more frequent and depends on the commitments made
by students and parents, whose purpose is to guarantee the rights of children and adolescents
through due process.
This process is characterized by two important aspects: first, the role of the principal and the
school counselor in inquiring about their behavior, their daily life at school, and the situations they
face in their family and social environment; in other words, the willingness to continuously monitor
students with behavioral, emotional, or psychological difficulties so that they improve; second,
the responsibility to keep forms or documents that demonstrate the monitoring of situations (see
Figure 4).
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Rev. Unimar Vol. 43 No. 1 pp. 178-195
Figure 4
Monitoring conflict situations
Note. Based on Molina (2022).
The documents used in this context are the Observer or Cumulative Record, the Monitoring Form,
and the Conditional Enrollment Form. The Observer or Cumulative Record is designed to provide
periodic or repeated descriptions throughout the year of the student’s academic and social life,
throughout his or her stay at the institution. That is, it can accumulate information from several
years, including monitoring, support, involvement, strengths and weaknesses, and in some cases,
physical and psychological aspects; for example, height, weight, disability, etc. Another important
aspect is that it contains relevant information about the parents or guardians, such as their details,
occupation, and profession.
The follow-up forms specify the student’s repeat offenses and aspects such as commitments and
the guardian’s signature to ensure due process. Conditional enrollment forms are the coordinator’s
last resort since after the entire coexistence process, carried out with the school counselor in the
company of the guardian or parent, this form is legalized under the provisions of the Coexistence
Manual and with the support and decision of the Coexistence Committee. This form informs
the guardian of the student’s behavior; if the inappropriate behavior continues, the conditional
enrollment will be canceled.
Discussion
When studying the management of coexistence in schools from the perspective of school principals
and school counselors and after triangulating the information (Molina, 2022), it can be noted that
the authors focus their studies on aspects that structure the management of coexistence. From
this perspective, it can be noted that there are models of coexistence management that focus on
addressing punitive, relational, and integrated conflict situations (Torrego, 2006). Sullivan (cited in
Martín et al., 2003), in addition to the punitive, includes consequences and feelings.
For his part, Morales (2022) focuses on the management of coexistence on due process in a
circle of dialogue that seeks to guarantee respect for human beings and their rights. However, the
reality is that there is no defined model in educational institutions; management has limitations
Coexistence management, perception of the coordinator and the school counselor: Phenomenological study
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Rev. Unimar Vol. 43 No. 1 pp. 178-195
that depend on external agents and generally
respond to sanctioning actions and the social
environment and its problems, and not to a
programmed or directed planning.
On the other hand, some authors frame the
management of coexistence in aspects of
promotion and prevention, which are generally
characterized by being formative (Canchila and
Pacheco, 2021; Briceño, 2024; Carvajal and
Acebedo, 2019), and directed relating to being,
ethics and values, the construction of peace,
and citizenship.
Molina (2022), from the emotional approach,
considers that the components of attention,
promotion, prevention, and monitoring of conflict
situations are not mutually exclusive, but rather
complementary; she gives equal importance to
all the processes that influence the management
of coexistence to address conflict situations and
reduce violence in schools.
Likewise, Saavedra (2024) explains that in
addition to punitive and formative approaches,
there are also managerial ones, that is,
management actions in directing school
coexistence, such as the application of the Plan,
Do, Check, Act —PDCA— cycle (Lombana, 2016)
) and the European Foundation for Quality
Management (EFQM) model (Ortiz-Padilla
et al., 2018), which seek to improve school
coexistence systemically. Although educational
institutions carry out activities with the same
objective of mitigating violence, they are not
always part of institutional plans, which shows
a lack of management, given the absence of
clear objectives and indicators, targets, and
evaluation of their impact on school coexistence.
Conclusions
The following aspects define the management of
coexistence in schools: 1) it includes elements
of management, planning, implementation,
evaluation, and monitoring that strengthen
peaceful coexistence; 2) it is based on norms,
rules, and laws that regulate student behavior
and the interaction educational community;
3) it formalizes management procedures
through documents to ensure due process;
4) it has goals, objectives, and indicators that
continuously improve school coexistence; 5) it
is flexible according to the coexistence needs of
students and changes in the social environment;
and 6) it has a defined approach: ethical-moral,
socio-emotional, restorative justice, citizenship,
and peace, conflict mediation, democratic
participation or punitive and inclusive.
The management of school coexistence in
educational institutions is more closely related
to the attention and monitoring of school
conflicts by school coordinators and counselors
since conflict situations between students will
always occur. However, it cannot be ignored that
prevention and promotion are also important
because they can save lives. While counselors and
coordinators observe improvements in school
climate, they lack indicators to corroborate this
information. In addition, they lack clear statistics
on the use of psychoactive substances among
adolescents, bullying, classroom disruptions,
inappropriate behavior, and disrespect for
teachers, which demonstrates a lack of
systematic understanding of the progress made
in school coexistence. This progress is generally
measured in terms of students’ reactions to the
various activities carried out at school.
One of the management strategies directly
related to resolving conflicts between students
in educational institutions is the monitoring
and follow-up of conflict situations. In conflict
resolution, sanctions are still used as a correction,
that is, they are punitive. However, other
measures are taken to improve the fraternity
between those involved in such situations, which
is further strengthened through structured
training in values, peace, citizenship, democratic
participation, and interaction with others.
It’s worth noting that guidance goes hand in hand
with school coordination. In the management
of coexistence, these bodies complement each
other in resolving conflict situations and helping
students to complete their educational projects.
Both coordinators and guidance counselors
are aware of the importance of coexistence
for the educational community; therefore,
whenever necessary, they jointly develop
various strategies, plans, and activities aimed
at promoting healthy coexistence.
Coexistence management, perception of the coordinator and the school counselor: Phenomenological study
193
Liliana Esther Molina Isaza
Revista Unimar Enero-Junio 2025
e-ISSN: 2216-0116 ISSN: 0120-4327 DOI: https://doi.org/10.31948/rev.unimar
Rev. Unimar Vol. 43 No. 1 pp. 178-195
Conflict of interest
The author declares that she has no conflict of
interest that could affect the publication.
Ethical responsibilities
For the qualitative research, semi-structured
interviews were conducted with the principals,
coordinators, and school counselors who were
of legal age and who signed an informed consent
form for the collection of data.
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Contribution
Liliana Esther Molina Isaza: Principal investigator. Statistical data processing, writing materials
and methods, obtaining results, analyzing and interpreting results, writing the introduction,
methods, discussion, and conclusions.
The author prepared the manuscript, read it, and approved it.
