Capital Social y Redes Sociales de Maestros:Revisión Sistemática

Recent studies demonstrate the importance and applicability of the concept of social capital in education, especially in realtion to teachers, focusing on the analysis of social structures to understand how relationships between them can facilitate or inhibit access to different resources. With this purpose in mind, the present study performs a systematic review of the research that has been carried out on an international level in relation to teachers’ social capital and social networks to understand and demonstrate the importance of these constructs in the improvement of the educational praxis, as well as to promote their research. A search in the Eric and Web of Science databases during the period 2000- 2015 reports 143 studies that meet the defined inclusion criteria and, ofthese, 14 studies between the years 2008-2015 that focus on the figure of the teacher, which this study analyses in greater depth. Most teacher-focused studies explore the improvement of teacher support and professional development through interactions and the creation of professional learning communities. The results propose a classification model of the 14 studies in relation to social capital. Specifically, it is classified according to its conceptualization, based on its different structural, relational and cognitive dimensions, and its measurement, taking into account resources and positions in the network. However, results point to the need for greater consensus, due to the heterogeneity and variability of the studies reviewed. Finally, in the studies there is an agreement to explore the social capital of teachers from the analysis of social networks in order to analyse both formal networks, from the intentional support provided by schools, and informal networks, which appear spontaneously from personal relationships.