Fundamentación teórica y estudio de casos sobre el desarrollo de los huertos escolares con el referente de la agroecología

Abstract

The thesis is presented as a general purpose to develop the bases of a new educational field, School Agroecology, through its theoretical foundations and practical research on the development of an educational innovation around ecological school food garden with referent of Agroecology. The work is divided into three parts corresponding to its three strands, in which three different strategies study of School Agroecology develop, and intervention in our educational reality, on a general research approach of methodological Bricolage. Its three parts or chapters are autonomous, although closely related. 
The first chapter deals with the theoretical definition of School Agroecology, we understand as a didactic transposition of Agroecology. It is made from a literature analysis about the reference of School Agroecology: Agroecology, and we adopt our own stance. Then also reviews the concept of Didactic Transposition, then define the School Agroecology. Finally, we establishe a series of dialogues with other nearby educational proposals, to understand what contributes to them the School Agroecology: Education for Sustainablility of Huckle & Sterling, critical Environmental Education of Mogensen and Mayer, the éducation relative à l'eco-alimentation of Sauvé, the Education for Sustainable Consumption of Pujol and the approach of the network CoDeS.

The second chapter is a case study on the experience of School Agroecology developed in Sant Cugat del Vallès (Barcelona) between 2007 and 2013. Its purpose is to get an overall view of what has happened in seven years of School Agroecology in the municipality, however focuses on a specific aspect: the collaboration between the school and the community. The data sources consist of some documents produced by a working group: 62 minutes of meetings of the group for Sustainability Education Along Life (ESLV in catalan). Through the progressive construction of assertions, organized through the application of the quality criteria of the collaboration between the school and the community, developed by the network CoDeS, an evolutionary interpretation of what has been happening is performed. The case study allows conclusions point as the role of different actors in the development of cooperation between the school and the community to promote School Agroecology. 
The third chapter covers other research that focuses on a specific group and a specific period: a group of 12 unemployed people who participated for six months training as agro-environmental educators in local experience of School Agroecology. The main source of research data consisted of 10 valuation narratives written at the end of the training period group. The analysis of these narratives are organized into two different strategies: the approach to the narrative as a work of author and the analysis of two different semantic fields: the lived and narrated experience (as educators), and the assessment. The results show valuations of the participants about agroecological, schoolar and labour aspects. Agroecological sphere raises a surface adhesion, reflecting a slight learning, while others provoke passionate reactions and deeper reflections, because of the practical approach to training that incorporated the participants to school centers. It is concluded that the formation process has promoted the skills of teamwork and made them face their own conceptions of school. 
We end the thesis with a final CODA where the feedbacks that have the three chapters, in the sense that it has been a non-linear construction, but in parallel, which have been mutually enriching arise. Also pose challenges in the areas of conceptualization, research and action we understand now open to School Agroecology, that which is not yet developed and the potential it has.

Date of Award	14 Sept 2015
Original language	English
Supervisor	Maria Espinet Blanch (Director)