This article examines the challenges faced by the English language teaching (ELT) field in Colombia in addressing issues of violence and social injustice through communicative skills. While Colombian education includes history and social studies courses that tackle these issues, ELT has struggled to integrate them meaningfully. To explore this gap, data were collected from a larger ethnographic project in a marginalized high school in Bogotá, where pedagogical practices centered on social justice and peace were examined. Framed by social justice and peacebuilding concepts, the study highlights how students’ understanding of these concepts is complex and interconnected. It reveals that teaching social justice and peace requires creating safe spaces for students to share their lived experiences, particularly in contexts of socioeconomic hardship. The article discusses the potential of language education to promote peace by fostering critical thinking and empowering students to engage with pressing social issues in conflict-affected settings.
AdamsMZúñigaX (2018) Core concepts for social justice education. In: AdamsMHackmanHWCatalanoC, et al. (eds) Readings for Diversity and Social Justice. 4th ed.Routledge, pp. 41–49.
2.
AdamsMBellLAGriffinP (2007) Teaching for Diversity and Social Justice. Routledge.
3.
AharoniA (2009) Peace, Literature, and ArtVol. I. EOLSS Publications.
4.
AinscowM (2020) Promoting inclusion and equity in education: Lessons from international experiences. Nordic Journal of Studies in Educational Policy6(1). Routledge: 7–16.
5.
AvineriNBaquedano-LópezP (2024) An Introduction to Language and Social Justice: What Is, What Has Been, and What Could Be. Taylor & Francis.
6.
BajajM (2008a) ‘Critical’ peace education. In: BajajM (ed.) Encyclopedia of Peace Education. Information Age Pub., pp. 135–146.
7.
BajajM (2008b) Encyclopedia of Peace Education. Information Age Pub.
8.
BajajM (2015) ‘Pedagogies of resistance’ and critical peace education praxis. Journal of Peace Education12(2): 154–166.
9.
BajajM (2017) Human Rights Education: Theory, Research, Praxis. University of Pennsylvania Press.
10.
BajajMHantzopoulosM (2016) Introduction: Theory, research, and praxis of peace education. In: BajajMHantzopoulosM (eds) Peace Education: International Perspectives. London: Bloomsbury Academic, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing, Plc, pp. 1–16.
11.
BanegasDLGovenderN (2021) Gender Diversity and Sexuality in English Language Education: New Transnational Voices. Bloomsbury Academic.
12.
BanegasDLVillacañas de CastroLS (2016) Criticality. ELT Journal70(4): 455–457.
13.
BanksJ (2022) Benavides The Inclusion Dialogue: Debating Issues, Challenges and Tensions with Global Experts. Taylor & Francis.
14.
BanksJABanksCAM (eds) (2016) Multicultural Education: Issues and Perspectives. Wiley.
15.
BellLA (2018) Theoretical foundations for social justice education. In: AdamsMHackmanHWCatalanoC, et al. (eds) Readings for Diversity and Social Justice. 4th ed.Routledge, pp. 34–41.
16.
Benavides CastroABermeoMJ (2023) Territorial peace education as responsive praxis: Case analysis of education innovations in Colombia. Journal of Peace Education20(1): 8–29.
17.
BickmoreK (2017) Conflict, peacebuilding and education: Rethinking pedagogies in divided societies, Latin America and around the world. In: BickmoreKHayhoeRManionC, et al. (eds) Comparative and International Education: Issues for Teachers, Second Edition. Canadian Scholars’ Press, pp. 235–268.
18.
BickmoreKKaderiASGuerra-SuaÁ (2017) Creating capacities for peacebuilding citizenship: History and social studies curricula in Bangladesh, Canada, Colombia, and México. Journal of Peace Education52: 1–28.
19.
BouldingE (2000) Cultures of Peace: The Hidden Side of History. Syracuse, N.Y: Syracuse Univ Pr.
20.
BowdenJL-HTickleLNaumannK (2021) The four pillars of tertiary student engagement and success: A holistic measurement approach. Studies in Higher Education46(6): 1207–1224.
Burgos MéndezDMRuíz PeñaJJMartínez RamosM (2017) Formación de maestros enfocada a la construcción de paz desde el reconocimiento y la justicia social. Análisis49(91): 359–380.
25.
CapeheartLMilovanovicD (2007) Social Justice: Theories, Issues, and Movements. Critical issues in crime and society. New Brunswick, N.J: Rutgers University Press.
26.
CarspeckenPF (1996) Critical Ethnography in Educational Research: A Theoretical and Practical Guide. Critical social thought. New York: Routledge.
27.
Carvajal MedinaN (2020) EFL pre-service & in-service teachers as agents of change: Enhancing social justice practices in a Colombian public university. Journal of Higher Education Theory and Practice20(11). 11.
28.
Cochran-SmithM (2010) Toward a Theory of Teacher Education for Social Justice. In: Second International Handbook of Educational Change. Springer International Handbooks of Education. Springer, Dordrecht, pp. 445–467. Available at: https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-90-481-2660-6_27 (accessed 26 August 2017).
CorbinJStraussA (2008) Basics of Qualitative Research: Techniques and Procedures for Developing Grounded Theory. SAGE Publications. Available at: https://books.google.ca/books?id=0TI8Ugvy2Z4C.
31.
CorbinJStraussAL (1994) Grounded theory methodology: an overview. In: DenzinNKLincolnYS (eds) Handbook of Qualitative Research. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE, pp. 273–285.
32.
CreminHBevingtonT (2017) Positive Peace in Schools: Tackling Conflict and Creating a Culture of Peace in the Classroom. Taylor & Francis.
33.
CrenshawK (1989) Demarginalizing the intersections of Race and Sex: A black feminist critique of antidiscrimination doctrine, feminist theory and antiracist politics. In: Feminism in the Law Theory Practice and Criticism. Chicago: University of Chicago Legal Forum, pp. 139–167.
34.
CreswellJW (2009) Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches. 3rd ed.Los Angeles: Sage Pubs.
35.
CreswellJW (2013) Qualitative Inquiry & Research Design : Choosing among Five Approaches. 3rd ed.Thousand Oaks: SAGE.
36.
Cruz-ArcilaF (2022) English language teaching in rural Colombia amidst the armed conflict: A case study of teacher positioning vis-à-vis policy, practice, and the profession. In: Language Education in Multilingual Colombia. Routledge.
37.
DanforthS (2018) Social justice and technocracy: Tracing the narratives of inclusive education in the USA. In: Special Education and Globalisation. Routledge.
38.
FreireP (1970) Pedagogy of the Oppressed. New York: Seabury Press.
39.
GaltungJ (1969) Violence, peace, and peace research. Journal of Peace Research6(3): 167–191.
40.
GaltungJ (1990) Cultural violence. Journal of Peace Research27(3): 291–305.
41.
GaltungJ (1996) Peace by Peaceful Means: Peace and Conflict, Development and Civilization. Peace by peaceful means: Peace and conflict, development and civilization. Thousand Oaks, CA, US: Sage Publications, Inc.
42.
GaltungJFischerD (2013) Positive and negative peace. In: GaltungJFischerD (eds) Johan Galtung: Pioneer of Peace Research. SpringerBriefs on Pioneers in Science and Practice. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer, pp. 173–178. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-32481-9_17 (accessed 8 June 2020).
43.
GeraldJPB (2022) Antisocial Language Teaching: English and the Pervasive Pathology of Whiteness. Channel View Publications.
44.
GillSNiensU (2014) Education as humanisation: A theoretical review on the role of dialogic pedagogy in peacebuilding education. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education44(1): 10–31.
45.
González GonzálezFE (2014) Poder y Violencia En Colombia. Colección Territorio, Poder y Conflicto. Bogotá, Colombia: ODECOFI-CINEP.
46.
GuerreroCH (2016) Language policies in Colombia: The inherited disdain for our native languages. HOW - A Colombian Journal for Teachers of English11(2): 11–24.
47.
HantzopoulosMBajajM (2021) Educating for Peace and Human Rights: An Introduction. Bloomsbury Publishing.
48.
HarrisI (2009) Peace education: Definitions, approaches and future directions. In: AharoniA (ed.) Peace, Literature, and Art - Volume I. EOLSS Publications, pp. 77–96.
49.
HastingsCJacobL (2016) Social Justice in English Language Teaching. Maryland: TESOL Press.
50.
HelpmanE (2018) Globalization and Inequality. Harvard University Press.
51.
JakarVSMilofskyA (2016) Bringing peacebuilding into the English language classroom. In: HastingsCJacobL (eds) Social Justice in English Language Teaching. Maryland: TESOL Press, pp. 41–66.
52.
KantI (1983) Perpetual Peace and Other Essays. Hackett Publishing.
53.
KrippendorffK (2004) Content Analysis: An Introduction to Its Methodology. SAGE.
54.
Ladson-BillingsG (2009) The Dreamkeepers : Successful Teachers of African American Children. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
LederachJP (1992) Beyond Prescription: New Lenses for Conflict Resolution Training Across Cultures. Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies, Conrad Grebel College.
Mac GintyR (2013) Routledge Handbook of Peacebuilding. Routledge.
60.
MartínCS (2023) Educación como derecho con y para la justicia social. Recorridos, reflexiones, continuidades y vínculos con el estudio de las MSE. Boletín OACEP: 58–66.
61.
MéndezMJCaicedoF (2020) Soñando el fin del conflicto: Anhelos de paz en la palabra cantada desde el Pacífico afrocolombiano. Una lectura sociocrítica. Dilemas - Revista de Estudos de Conflito e Controle Social13(2): 413–438.
NietoSBodeP (2012) Affirming Diversity : The Sociopolitical Context of Multicultural Education. Boston, MA: Pearson.
64.
Ortaçtepe-HartD (2023) Social Justice and the Language Classroom: Reflection, Action, and Transformation. Edinburgh University Press.
65.
OrtegaY (2020) “Rebeldes en acción”: A case study in English teaching in a marginalized Colombian high school. In: BergerLM (ed.), Social Justice and International Education: Research, Practice, and Perspectives. NAFSA: Association of International Educators, pp. 111–134.
66.
OrtegaY (2022) Late capitalism and the commodification of English in Colombia: The shaping of language education policy and practice. In: MirandaNde MejíaA-MGiraldoSV (eds.), Language Education in Multilingual Colombia: Critical Perspectives and Voices from the Field. Routledge, pp. 131–148.
67.
OrtegaY (2024) Sparking the flame within: From the slums to the academic world. In: Parker-ShandalCAH (ed.), First-Gen Docs: Personal, Political, and Intellectual Perspectives from the First-Generation Doctoral Experience. Brill, pp. 70–84. https://brill.com/display/title/69656
68.
OrtegaYGuarnizoL (2022) Peace education in high school english language teaching in Colombia. In: Gagné A, Kalan A and Herath S (eds.), Critical Action Research Challenging Neoliberal Language and Literacies Education. Peter Lang, pp. 195–211. https://www.peterlang.com/document/1177334
69.
OxfordR (ed.) (2014) Understanding Peace Cultures. Peace education. Information Age Publishing.
70.
ParisD (2012) Culturally sustaining pedagogy: A needed change in stance, terminology, and practice. Educational Researcher41(3): 93–97.
71.
ParisD (2021) Culturally sustaining pedagogies and our futures. The Educational Forum85(4). Routledge: 364–376.
72.
ParisDAlimHS (eds) (2017) Culturally Sustaining Pedagogies: Teaching and Learning for Justice in a Changing World. New York: Teachers College Press.
73.
PeláezOUsmaJ (2017) The crucial role of educational stakeholders in the appropriation of foreign language education policies: A case study. PROFILE Issues in Teachers’ Professional Development19(2): 121.
74.
Pérez-RubianoPPeñaloza-RallónALópez-AcevedoJ, et al. (2024) Reclaiming the Colombian English language teaching field to sow the seeds of change through self-study. Profile: Issues in Teachers’ Professional Development26(2). 2: 125–140.
75.
PowellJ a (2012) Racing to Justice: Transforming Our Conceptions of Self and Other to Build an Inclusive Society. Indiana University Press.
76.
PrasadGAugerNLe PichonEV (2022) Multilingualism and Education: Researchers’ Pathways and Perspectives. Cambridge University Press.
77.
PruittLJ (2013) Youth Peacebuilding: Music, Gender, and Change. SUNY Press.
78.
RawlsJ (1971) A Theory of Justice. Harvard University Press.
79.
Romero-AmayaD (2024) The making of the citizen in Colombia: Transitional assemblages, civic education, and the long quest for peace. Education, Citizenship and Social Justice19(2). SAGE Publications: 165–184.
ScanlonHMurithiT (2007) Peacemaking, Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding: The Un’s Role in Africa. The United Nations and Africa. Centre for Conflict Resolution. Available at: https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep05180.8 (accessed 7 January 2025).
82.
SenA (1999) Development as Freedom. Oxford University Press.
Sierra PiedrahitaAM (2016) Contributions of a social justice language teacher education perspective to professional development programs in colombia. PROFILE Issues in Teachers’ Professional Development18(1): 203–217.
85.
YinRK (2014) Case Study Research : Design and Methods. 5th ed.Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.
86.
ZeichnerKM (2009) Teacher Education and the Struggle for Social Justice. New York: Routledge.
87.
ZembylasM (2015) ‘Pedagogy of discomfort’ and its ethical implications: the tensions of ethical violence in social justice education. Ethics and Education10(2): 163–174.
