Inclusive education from an ethical and connection perspective: The implementation of school integration programs in Chilean rural schools

Abstract

Educational inclusion policies in Chile have sought to expand equitable access to schooling, with significant implications for rural education. Rural schools increasingly enroll students excluded from urban schools, many with special educational needs and irregular trajectories. While the School Integration Program (PIE by the Spanish acronym) was designed to address such diversity, its implementation in rural contexts presents multiple challenges. This study examines how rural schools mediate the inclusion of urban students through institutional practices. A multiple-case study was conducted in five rural schools across three macro-regions of Chile, using interviews, participant observation, and intra- and cross-case analysis. Findings reveal that, at the policy level, schools must comply with diagnostic-based regulations and quota systems that overlook rural specificities, leading to overcrowding, professional turnover, and infrastructural limitations. Culturally, rural schools construct an ethic of care that emphasizes student relationships, trajectories, and territorial ties, forming a distinctive dimension of institutional mediation. At the practical level, tensions arise between biomedical approaches, which label students, and pedagogical logics that promote inclusion without stigmatization. The study concludes that rural schools implement the PIE through situated institutional mediation, integrating ethical principles, organizational decisions, and pedagogical relationships to navigate the complexities of inclusive education.