81141 EDUC ATIO N RESILIE N C E A PPROAC H ES Field Notes Issue No. 4 June 2013 Jenni Castro, researcher Voices from the field: interview at the Francisco Morazán Pedagogical University with a local researcher studying resilience and gang violence in “We found Honduras risks, but in the The Resilience Rapid School Assessment (RES-School) was conducted same school by a research team at the the Francisco Morazán Pedagogical we found University in Honduras, with training and technical assistance from The World Bank’s ERA Program. The study focuses on education elements of resilience of students facing social risks generated by the violent resilience.” soccer fan clubs. Uncovering indicators of resilience Education Resilience Approaches The research was an extremely interesting line of inquiry, especially the narrative perspective. As for the topic of resilience, it was my first time. The schools or institutes that were selected for the sample had very specific characteristics—one of the public system’s largest schools, and one located in a rural area. One thing we learned is that there are [both] risk indicators and resilience indicators we can use ... taking the angle The World Bank of young people’s immersion in youth gangs to support [name of youth soccer team], The ERA Program is a World Bank program this was a very unique element in the research process ... We discovered it’s actually at that offers a systematic process to collect evidence that can support local efforts to school where young people gather as a group to strengthen that sense of belonging improve education services in violence and to youth gangs … We found risks, but in the same school we found elements of conflict affected contexts. resilience. Field Notes Series We found very particular elements. For example, the support among peers, the The Field Notes series is produced to share lessons around this process in an family, the desire to belong to a team whether it’s for self-defense, safety, friendship. effort to disseminate ERA’s support for the collection of global evidence on resilience There are always elements like the drive to overcome, related to this the desire to in contexts of adversity. June 2013 - The ERA Program Field Notes 1 get ahead, the eagerness to stay in school”. The teachers’ perspective had advantages: they are young school, to go to university, belong to is also interesting, though teachers and can speak the same language a community, the support of family, sometimes aren’t free to share as the youth. Having the young and even religious questions. These … [However], they are all side peoples’ perspective helped to gain are indicators of resilience. by side, teachers, students, the entry into [the schools], and also in administration, the people who the data collection. “[Students live in] clean, who sell, they are all together in one environment ... Working with the this environment community of ‘I need to belong Building research skills Being familiar with the environment to [name of gang] While we work through this [in the schools] really helped to research, a learning process is also because only by happening. The World Bank really open doors, because there are schools where you are not freely being part of that brought a lot in terms of the ethics invited, and you have to find an that went into this process. [The ally to enter… On the other hand, group am I sure that Bank] truly strengthened this ethics with the other [rural] school we I won’t be pressured management part of the data, had to approach the community. because of the topic, because of We were able to go inside the to join another the vulnerability of the people who school, that was another issue… an group’ .” are in these [dangerous situations]. achievement. I think up to now we The researchers gained a lot from are very pleased with the analysis But they also emerge because of this process and the teachers as that’s been done. the other perspective [of risk]. The well, because they are actually condition of risk, what they face, teacher-investigators. One of the “The World Bank having to experience the [violent] reality in their own school, even researchers works [at the same really brought school] where the research was among their friends. It creates this carried out. a lot in terms of environment of “I need to belong to [name of gang] because only by Young researchers at our university the ethics that being part of that group am I sure I ... received capacity building during the research process … went into this won’t be pressured to join another group”. A series of elements Including them in the process process.“ emerged that truly surprised us, traumatic stories, interesting stories, very particular ones, about family… Students fill out the resilience research questionnaire Tapping into multiple perspectives During the process of conducting focus groups with parents [we discivered] what they experience as the parents of young people exposed to particular dangers. [Sometimes they were] a bit fearful to say that “it is my son”, or “the place where my son goes to 2 June 2013 - The ERA Program Field Notes