Implementation of public policy of school coexistence in Colombia

Introduction: In Colombia, after legal processes derived from cases of direct and structural violence that had students as victims, Law 1620 of 2013 was enacted; despite the existence of the public policy, this scourge persists.Objective: This article presents the results of a study that determines the perception of middle school students and teachers about implementing the public policy of school coexistence and mitigation of school violence in the municipality of Tunja, Colombia.Methodology: Two questionnaires were used: one applied to 1,074 students in the ninth, tenth, and eleventh grades of public and private schools, and the other applied to 50 teachers assigned to these courses.Results: Regarding the perception of the implementation of the policy, it was found that there is a significant difference between the responses of students and teachers in the factor of socialization of the procedure (t = 3.207, p = 0.002 < 0.005). In the aspects of strengthening and perceived impact, there were no significant differences.Conclusion: There are differences in the perception that both groups have regarding the implementation of the School Coexistence Law in their educational institutions. It was evidenced that teachers have a more positive perception than students concerning the implementation of the policy.