The School as a social agent:

diversities, conflicts and the formation of individuals

Abstract

The school as a social institution plays a central role in shaping individuals, mediating diversity, and producing sociocultural meanings. The experiences of school actors — students, teachers, administrators, and the community — reveal tensions, inequalities, and potentialities that shape school routines and directly influence socialization and human development. This integrative review analyzed scientific production on the school as a social agent, considering 33 initially identified materials and 26 documents that met eligibility criteria. Findings indicate that sociocultural factors, educational inequalities, pedagogical practices, interpersonal conflicts, and institutional policies condition school interactions and influence the development of individuals. Studies show that schools both reproduce structural inequalities and act as spaces of resistance, dialogue, and social transformation. Understanding the school as a social agent requires acknowledging its complexity, the plurality of experiences lived within it, and the need for inclusive, democratic, and contextualized pedagogical practices.