Compreensões da prática pedagógica de educação infantil na perspectiva das famílias

Abstract

The present study deals with a qualitative research in education, which aimed to understand the understandings of the pedagogical practice of early childhood education from the perspective of the families of children using child institutions, of municipalities in two states in the Northeast, Alagoas and Pernambuco. To this end, the research involved the exhibition of two films about the daily situations of early childhood education in two countries, Brazil and Denmark, and their discussion in focus groups formed by parents of young children. It is characterized as a complement to the broader research developed at the Federal University of Alagoas, entitled “Understandings of the pedagogical practice of early childhood education: second-order observations from video recording” (HADDAD, 2018), which aimed to understand concepts and values basic principles related to good pedagogical practices in early childhood education using the Sophos method. This method, developed by two Danish researchers (HANSEN; JENSEN, 2004), combines the display of films of contrasting practices and their discussion in a focus group by several observers/participants. The term is an acronym for Second Order Phenomenological Observation Scheme, a title that indicates the purpose of that method: second order observations. Thus, the researcher who uses Sophos observes people who are observing the video recording pedagogical practice in the films. With the use of Sophos, the present research is constituted by an empowerment of the voices of the families, which were granted for the survey of themes and issues discussed in this study. Two focus group were carried out, comprising the participation of nine family members, including fathers and/or mothers of children enrolled in daycare centers, preschools and/or similar. The themes that emerged in the focus groups were grouped into three major thematic categories, namely: the child's view; child education and everyday life; and, interfaces between early childhood education and families. From the three categories analyzed, the central points of each category were brought together, constituting a set of two pedagogical approaches - the school logic and the logic of life - pursued and announced in the family’s understandings, thus indicating that there is a set of general logic in the control of the pedagogical practices viewed, discussed and expressed in their opinions and testimonies. The understandings of families in this study invite us to reflect on a more attentive, sensitive and subtle look with regard to pedagogical work with young children, revealing an interesting and important premise on pedagogical practice in early childhood education. The importance of this study is to contribute to the visibility and valuation of the specificities and practices of childcare and education, thus constituting a material for reflection for the early childhood education units about what families think and how they think pedagogical practices developed in these contexts.