El sueño del barrio de Montserrat: la participación de residentes marroquíes en un proceso de desarrollo comunitario desde la escuela en la España urbana

Identifier:  imarina:5816952

Handle: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11797/imarina5816952

Authors:  Girbes-Peco, Sandra; Ines Renta-Davids, Ana; De Botton, Lena; Alvarez-Cifuentes, Pilar

Abstract:
© 2018, © 2018 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. Previous research has identified the potential of community-based development processes to reverse inequalities. However, in many cases, constraints arise that hinder the achievement of community goals. This article focuses on the role contributed by a school to overcome these barriers. Specifically, we address the role played by the Mare de Déu de Montserrat School, which is a Learning Community, in the launch and development of a community-based process. Known as The Dream, this process was initiated by a group of unemployed Moroccan residents in an impoverished urban neighbourhood in Spain. Through this process, the neighbours have created a self-managed community garden, which has enabled them to improve their job training and build social networks. Based on the communicative methodology, our qualitative study finds that this school has contributed to the creation of specific conditions that helped to overcome some barriers that had hindered the emergence of community responses. In addition, the contributions of the school have promoted a horizontal and dialogical organization of the process, placing neighbours in central positions in decision-making and leadership roles. This case study provides relevant theoretical and practical implications for the contributions that certain school-based interventions can provide to promote community initiatives in impoverished environments.