Políticas Públicas de Formação Continuada de Professores para atuar na Educação a Distância/UAB: desafios e realidades no IFSul.

Abstract

This research analyses the public policies of teacher training for faculty working with distance education through the Universidade Aberta (Open University) – UAB. It was guided by the policy cycle approach proposed by Stephen Ball and his collaborators as a methodological theoretical procedure, under the comprehension of the five proposed contexts for the analysis of public policies. Data was obtained by a field research, subsidized by a bibliographic review, a documental research, a case study with the application of an exploratory questionnaire and a semi-structured interview, providing input for the textual discursive analysis supported by Word Smith software. This procedure enabled observation in all sectors in which the policies are built, and demonstrated that the contexts are not isolated from each other, but intertwined and exert influences among themselves. This study focuses, more specifically, on the processes of the Open University (UAB) at IFSul. The comprehension of the work methodology together with different contexts are brought up, with the influence context referring to the public policies of teacher training being related to the strategy context and teacher education.The context of text production is found at the data identified in the local and national legislation for distance education of the Open University. The contexts of practice and effect and results are identified in the construction of this policy at campus Pelotas, IFSul, regarding the characters involved and the results and responsiveness in the related community where the programs are offered. Data also shows that IFSul was able to use a certain autonomy for the course offerings, as part of the construction of the policy, as well as the curriculum design and classroom organization, even if these procedures were minimized by the budget cut downs of CAPES during their construction process. The need for a collaborative work during the development of the didactic material and the process with the students was identified. This type of work demands knowledges that need to be better developed on the search for more quality in the teaching and learning process, which depend on continuous teacher training, considering the constant challenges that are present in the educational processes and mainly in education mediated by technology. The study groups of continuing education organized at IFSul through the Annual Continuous Teacher Training Program and offered with support from the government had only one edition, however, the dynamics of this process happen through the construction of knowledges in meetings, seminars and information exchange among participants, the guidance of more experienced peers and the individual quest for continuous education. These strategies allow for the development of knowledges of the characters involved in this work.