Caracterización y sentido actual de la autoridad pedagógica en escuelas chilenas de sectores de pobreza

Abstract

This article presents the results of a research project on teacher authority in lower middle-class schools of Santiago, Chile. The main objective of this research is to characterize the meaning that pupils and teachers grant to teacher authority. We examined the reasons given by the students to explain why they obey some of their teachers; in addition, we interviewed eight teachers who were recognized by their pupils as the most respected and to whom the pupils were the most obedient. The meaning of teacher authority for the pupils and teachers constitutes the object of this study.