As práticas pedagógicas e a autonomia docente nos anos iniciais do ensino fundamental

Abstract

This article has two main aims, namely, to analyze how the teaching practices developed by teachers in the early years of elementary school reveal those professionals’ autonomy and to identify their knowledge. The theoretical background includes Gimeno Sacristán (1999), who addresses the teacher’s practice intention and its conceptual definition; Tardif (2010; 2011), who helps us to understand and list specific teacher’s knowledge comprised in their practice, while the theoretical construction put forward by Contreras (2002) supports our discussion about teacher’s autonomy and its concept. To carry out a reflection about scientific research and support the data collected, we referred to Bourdieu (1983; 2021) and his concept of habitus, symbolic violence, and reproduction in the education field. Data treatment and analysis was carried out based on content analysis, according to Bardin (2016). The research agents were teachers working in the early years of elementary school in the public education system of the municipality of Ponta Grossa/ PR. This study results indicate that when teachers are in their classrooms, they can exercise greater autonomy, choose singular methods, and privilege the kind of practice that caters for their students. However, this autonomy decreases due to the standardization of evaluations at the municipal level regarding continuous education that does not originate in the teachers’ interest or their school routine.