Uma missão educativa metodista: o Instituto Porto Alegre – Departamento de Jaguarão 1942-1952.

Abstract

A Methodist educational mission: Porto Alegre Institute (IPA) – Jaguarão Department Education 1942 -1952. This research is based on the Philosophy and History Education Research of Postgraduate Program of Education Faculty at Federal University of Pelotas, Brazil. It proposes an investigation into Porto Alegre Institute (IPA) – Jaguarão Department / RS. This research aims to describe and characterize the school culture in IPA – Jaguarão Department (called Ipinha), between 1942 - 1952, focusing specifically on school culture of sports and cultural artifacts and practices transmitted by the "Hymn", the "streamer", the "Athletic Department" and " Joaquim Caetano da Silva’s Literary Guild”. This temporal delimitation is due to that 1942 was the date of the College foundation referred and 1952 the date of expropriation by the Government State. Another important point is the fact that Jaguarão has been twenty-eight years without Junior High School. This was only offered again thanks to the IPA’s installation – Jaguarão Department since the closure of Espirito Santo College -Jaguarão, in 1914, because it was not able to equate with the College Pedro II, the city ran out of Junior High School option, requiring families to send their children to other cities in order to give them continuity to their studies and leaving many people without completing the basic education. The research is characterized as a qualitative research, which has a cultural history approach, but with many historicist aspects. In addition, mainly to contextualize the study period, they present reflections on the history of Methodist Education in Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul and specially Jaguarão. It is noteworthy that the Methodist educational mission prioritized strategic cities to establish their pioneering schools, such as the inside of the Southeast Region, believing that these cities were decided the political and economic future of the country (Piracicaba, Ribeirão Preto and Juiz de Fora). The Methodist educational mission in Rio Grande do Sul had the American College as a reference for other female education Colleges and IPA College as male education of the reference. “The Ipinha” was officially opened on 11 May 1942. This was a mixed Methodist College with residential school and male boarding school. The Methodist pedagogical action was grounded in the American education system that was based on the liberal, nationalist and pragmatic ideal, aiming to form working citizens with a spirit of leadership, democratic, firm moral position and to respect individuality and personal merit. The Methodist educational philosophy was focused on the ideas of freedom, efficiency, democracy and personal success and had a useful and practical character, because education was aimed at emancipation. The teaching method was student-centered, intuitive, used observation and experience and the foundation of its curriculum was the natural sciences, concerned with scientific rigor. Studies that address aspects of Methodist education were investigated in the works of the following authors: Salvador (1982), Rocha (1967), Mosque (1995, 2001), Mesquida (1993, 1994), Rodrigues (1995), Kennedy (1928) James (1963), Elias (2001), Adams (2004, 2005a, 2005b), Barbosa (1995), Dreher (1993), Heitzenrater (1996), Betts (2007), Garin (2001), Streck (1995), Mattos (2000) and Buyers (1945).