Behind the Scenes: A Look at a Decade of Research in Educational Institutions

Publication Date: 2024
Author(s): Kleidermacher, G.

This introductory chapter reconstructs the trajectory of a decade-long research program examining discrimination, migration, and schooling in Buenos Aires. Drawing on multiple institutional research projects (UBACyT, PRII, and PICT), the author reflects on the evolution of theoretical frameworks, methodological decisions, and empirical challenges encountered while studying social representations of migrants among secondary school students and school leaders. The chapter situates schools as key state institutions for managing ethnic and national diversity and highlights how social representations formed within educational spaces can translate difference into inequality. It also reflects on issues of research access, the impact of the COVID‑19 pandemic on fieldwork, and the value of mixed quantitative and qualitative approaches. The chapter serves as a conceptual and methodological bridge connecting the book’s empirical contributions.