Young People and High School in Mexico: Subjectivisation, Others and Reflexivity

This article is based on the finding that for many students, high school is a place for young people's life and living together, a place for subjectivisation. The process of subjectivisation is approached through a discussion that questions conceptions of students as strategists of their school trajectory, as well as conceptions of youth life as the excitement of vibrating together. The claim is made that young people's life at school is a process of finding meaningful Others: other styles, other friends, and the other gender. Faced with options and risks, students also develop reflexivity. These topics are examined in three different scenarios: a general high school that is part of the university system in Mexico City, a technical high school in the metropolitan area, and community intercultural high schools in an indigenous rural zone.