5th ISA Forum of Sociology (6-11 July 2025)

Secondary school has become a decisive part of compulsory schooling for the present and future integration of young people. As a modern institution, the school has difficulties in guaranteeing meaningful learning as it is challenged by contemporary social transformations: new “social question” expressions, the acceleration and digitalization of life, the modification of knowledge production and acquisition, the restructuring of traditional intergenerational relations, among others. At the same time, young people experience informal learning outside of school, which also puts pressure on school action. In response to this, small and medium-scale reforms are taking the form of devices: organizational and pedagogical measures that aim to respond to structural and strategic problems that are not solved by the school normal functioning. Examples of these are workshops, tutorials, new professional profiles in schools, etc. Halfway between a project rationale and a top-down / centralized reform, the rise of the devices in schools initiates a new relationship with change and its legitimacy.

We invite contributions that explore the ways in which these devices transform secondary education. That is to say, that investigate aspects such as: the implications for school actors, study the innovations associated with teaching and learning, observe how they relate to the subjectivity of young people in school, analyses the relationship between formal education and the informal activities that young people experience in other areas, particularly the digital one. This session will be an opportunity to compare devices and their consequences in different national contexts.