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The role of education in the reintegration of ex-combatants in Colombia and sustaining peacebuilding

Tue, April 16, 3:15 to 4:45pm, Hyatt Regency, Floor: Pacific Concourse (Level -1), Pacific H

Proposal

Abstract
Technical and vocational education and training (TVET) is a key component on disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration (DDR) processes. Yet little attention is paid to understanding the experiences and perspectives of the ex-combatants who participate in it. Through an in-depth qualitative interview study with ex-combatants in Colombia at various stages of engagement with TVET, we examine how “meaning” of education influences ex-combatants’ decision-making and behaviors, and what “roles” ex-combatants believe TVET plays in their reintegration. Our initial analysis suggests that differing stages of engagement with education may result in varying perspectives on the meaning of education in their reintegration, and how it has affected the establishment of new social networks. This research has the potential to assist practitioners in designing better interventions.

Objectives: Technical and vocational education and training (TVET) is considered a key means to prepare ex-combatants to develop skills, participate in the labor market, assume new social roles, and gain community acceptance (United Nations, 2006). Disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration (DDR) processes around the globe include TVET to promote development and prevent recidivism (UNESCO-UNIVOC, 2007). Previous studies have focused on understanding the limitations of TVET in providing livelihoods to ex-combatants, and have found challenges with program designs, implementation and post-conflict environmental constraints (Colletta et al., 1996; McMullin, 2013). However, in these studies the experiences and perspectives of the target group—ex-combatants—have remained unexplored (Annan, Brier, Aryemo, 2009; Nussio, 2012; Torjesen, 2013), making it unclear whether ex-combatants find access to TVET useful, and how to improve these programs.
We, therefore, conducted a qualitative study examining the experiences and perceptions of ex-combatants in Colombia to better understand how access to TVET affects ex-combatants reintegration trajectories. The following questions guided this study: (1) What meaning does access to technical/vocational education have for ex-combatants who are participating or graduated from a technical and vocational institution in Colombia as part of their reintegration process? (2) As part of this reintegration process, ex-combatants are expected to sever ties with the people they lived and worked within the armed groups—friends, colleagues, and sometimes even family members. What role, if any, does access to and participation in TVET as an institution play in developing new social supports, and networks to facilitate their reintegration?

Theoretical Framework: This study builds on Torjesen (2013) theory of ex-combatant reintegration. According to Torjesen (2013), reintegration is a process to transform combatants’ identities and behaviors into civilian identities and peaceful behaviors aligned with mainstream community rules. This framework moves beyond the United Nations (UN) definition of reintegration built around institutional support, instead of ex-combatants transformations. For the UN, reintegration consists of providing assistance to help ex-combatants “acquire civilian status and gain sustainable employment and income” (UN 2006). From Torjesen (2013), to understand reintegration, research should focus on ex-combatants experiences, and their socio-political and economic processes, rather than on the programs offered by international agencies and governments.

Methods, Data, and Analysis: Following Torjensen’s suggestion, we conducted in-depth qualitative interviews (Creswell, 2013) to capture how “meaning” of education influenced ex-combatants’ decision-making and behaviors, and what “roles” ex-combatants believed TVET plays in their social reintegration. The site selected for the research was Medellin. In this Colombian city, innovative and structured reincorporation processes co-exist with re-armament of illegal groups, presenting an appropriate context to understand the opportunities and challenges of social reintegration (Rozema, 2008). The sample included 20 ex-combatants. Ten were currently enrolled in TVET programs, while 10 were recent (within one year) graduates of TVET programs. The sample was drawn from across three levels of post-secondary programs, including technical, technological, and short courses. The sample also included both male and female participants who belonged to different armed groups. Data were analyzed in a three-stage process that included data examination, development of codes using two-cycle coding to establish patterns (Miles, Huberman, & Saldana, 2014), and using categories to answer the questions (Miles et al., 2014). In the first cycle of coding, each interview was analyzed separately to determine emerging themes. In the second cycle of coding, we made a cross-case analysis to find similarities and differences among the participants.

Results: Our initial analyses suggest that differing stages of engagement with education may result in varying perspectives on the meaning of education and the role of education to build social networks. Participants who are in the early stages of a TVET program may hold beliefs about the possible outcomes of their training that differs from graduates who have the additional perspective of having completed it, giving them the ability to reflect more deeply on the experience as a whole. Preliminary findings also suggest that different educational experiences and development of networks throughout the educational programs may result in various social connections in the community, and different types of social support.

Contribution: This study will contribute to research and practice in reintegration in several ways. At the theoretical level, this study introduces a firsthand understanding of the strength of the connection between TVET and reintegration into civilian life promoted by DDR policies and programs. This research also explores TVET’s role in developing new identities, behaviors, and relationship with communities, complementing previous studies that only analyze the contribution of TVET to economically reintegrate ex-combatants (Jennings, 2007; Karpinska, 2009).
At the practical level, this research will help create a bridge between ex-combatants and practitioners. Stronger comprehension of the particular ideas, motivations, and expectations that ex-combatants have for joining and finishing educational programs, their perception about institutional dynamics, and their criteria of social reintegration could contribute to developing more relevant TVET programs. Ex-combatants’ insights could shape future TVET programs to better respond to their needs, motivating program retention and completion. Moreover, this information could help identify how to better connect educational institutions with families and communities to facilitate reincorporation.

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