2021 Award "Best Practice in Citizen Participation"

The Dirección General Participación Ciudadana y Cercanía (Department of Citizen Participation) and the Ministry of Education of the City of Buenos Aires carried out a participatory process to involve all the actors of the educational community in the elaboration of the proposals for the return to face-to-face attendance in schools in  2021, after the initial crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.  

During the process, listening and brainstorming sessions were held with families with school-age children, students and teachers from state and private schools in the city in order to gather ideas, opinions and proposals from the stakeholders directly impacted by the educational measures. In addition, CSO representatives specialised in different topics related to education were invited to participate in a collaborative work meeting to exchange perspectives, alternatives and ideas for a safe return to face-to-face classes. Twelve members of 9 institutions and civil society organizations participated, among them: IIEP UNESCO, UNICEF, CIPPEC, Educar 2050, Enseñá por Argentina, Fundación Varkey, Cimientos, Voy con vos and the OEI (Organization of Ibero-American States).

UNICEF, for its part, promoted a survey aimed at young high school students through its U-Report tool, popularly known as U-Report. From January 28 to February 9, 2021, the opinion of 1,011 boys and girls between 13 and 24 years old studying in secondary schools in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires was surveyed.

The entire process was carried out in two stages that have already been completed and in a possible third stage to be confirmed. The first stage was focused on carrying out a diagnosis with the actors involved as well as providing them with a space for them to present their considerations. In addition, a second stage of accompaniment to the families, together with the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health, was carried out in order to channel the concerns and feelings of uncertainty that arose from the mothers, fathers and students of the schools. 

A total of 8 meetings were held with teachers and management teams from both private and state management, and at the pre-school, elementary and middle school levels, in which a total of 285 persons participated. A total of 48 people participated at the initial level, 96 people at the primary level and 141 people at the middle level.

The conclusions obtained from the process revolved around the expectations of the educational community regarding the face-to-face return to classes, as well as the design of strategies to use. All of them were analyzed and subsequently reported to the Ministry of Education in order to take them into account in designing public policies for the return to school in 2021. 

If we continue with the last and third stage, we will be able to generate a future based on the bonds of trust present in the neighbors.