THE COMMUNITY AS AN EDUCATIONAL SPACE: INTEGRATION AND LOCAL PROTAGONISM

Abstract

This article aimed to analyze the role of the community as an educational space, emphasizing its ability to integrate diverse knowledge and promote local protagonism. The topic was approached based on bibliographic research, developed from the reading and critical analysis of recent academic publications that address the connection between territory, university outreach, popular education, and social participation. The investigation revealed that the community, when recognized as a legitimate pedagogical entity, broadens the meaning of education, contributing to more contextualized, democratic, and socially informed training practices. The results demonstrated that valuing local knowledge, the dialogic action of universities through outreach, and the establishment of participatory spaces are central elements in building a pedagogy committed to processes of social transformation. It was also found that qualified listening, institutional mediation, and co-responsibility constitute essential dimensions of integration between educational institutions and territories. The analysis concluded that strengthening community protagonism in the educational field depends on overcoming hierarchical positions and adopting collaborative methodologies. It is recommended that further studies be carried out to explore the effects of these articulations on the training of educators and the formulation of public policies aimed at education rooted in the territory.