Educational Practices and Teaching Materials in Spanish Rural Schools from the Territorial Dimension

Abstract

Rural schools have their own identity, influenced by the context in which they are immersed and their multigrade classroom structure. According to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, educational institutions must ensure the preservation of the particularities of the environment by taking into account the territorial dimension as a contextual element and as social and cultural heritage. Therefore, the integration of territorial elements into educational practices, projects and didactic support materials is a relevant topic for investigation. This paper aims to identify whether rural schools have the work of the territorial dimension as a priority in their educational practices and, specifically, if the curricular didactic materials used in multigrade classrooms also contemplate this. A survey questionnaire was administered to a representative sample of 537 Spanish rural teachers, and focus groups and semi-structured interviews were conducted. The results show that, although work on the territorial dimension is considered, it is not identified as a priority. A dearth of didactic resources thinks about the rural context and has references to it, and there is a lack of collaboration with families and communities in the creation of resources. The conclusion refers to the importance of bearing in mind elements of the territorial dimension in curricular materials and improving communication networks between teachers and teacher training.