UNTYING KNOTS: A SHARED JOURNEY TOWARDS TRANSFORMING SCHOOL LIFE

Abstract

This article presents a programme on school cohesion implemented at a semi-private school in Salamanca, which moves beyond a punitive approach by strengthening the emotional bond between teachers and pupils, incorporating social-emotional learning, and using mediation and restorative practices as key tools for conflict management. Implemented over four years at secondary and sixth-form level, the programme has been structured in four phases: assessment, training, supported implementation and evaluation. Through a shared journey involving the entire educational community, this programme—based on responsibility, dialogue and making amends for harm—promotes a cultural shift within the school that positions teachers as mediators and creators of humanising educational bonds. The results obtained demonstrate that the approach is replicable and sustainable in other schools and confirm that adopting this type of methodology to foster harmonious school life helps to ensure that educational institutions are places where pupils can learn, live together and grow as individuals.